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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  2. The tickets are free of ________________.
  3. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  4. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  5. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  6. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  7. The ________________ market has crashed.
  8. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  9. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  10. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  11. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  12. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  13. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  14. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  15. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  16. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  17. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  18. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  19. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  20. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  21. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  22. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  23. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  24. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. charge — electricity
  2. charge — a price
  3. net — for catching
  4. stock — goods
  5. stick — a piece of wood
  6. wound — an injury
  7. stock — shares
  8. net — after costs
  9. jam — a tight spot
  10. jam — to spread on bread
  11. jam — in traffic
  12. net — in sport
  13. kick — a thrill
  14. chip — to eat
  15. stick — to attach or keep to
  16. wound — an injury
  17. chip — for betting
  18. chip — in a computer
  19. stick — a piece of wood
  20. wound — past of 'wind'
  21. kick — in football
  22. charge — in control
  23. stock — a soup base
  24. kick — with a leg

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com