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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 116 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. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  2. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  3. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  4. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  5. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  6. Did you ________________ the button?
  7. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  8. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  9. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  10. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  11. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  12. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  13. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  14. There's no middle ________________.
  15. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  16. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  17. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  18. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  19. How do you ________________ your surname?
  20. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  21. The tickets are free of ________________.
  22. That was ________________ to happen.
  23. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  24. The elephant has a huge ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — a hint
  2. bound — tied together
  3. charge — electricity
  4. spell — a short time
  5. ground — crushed
  6. press — to push
  7. ground — the earth
  8. charge — in control
  9. spell — magic
  10. cue — a signal
  11. press — newspapers
  12. bound — obliged
  13. capital — money
  14. ground — a position
  15. trunk — of a tree
  16. press — a publisher
  17. trunk — of a car
  18. cue — for pool
  19. spell — letters
  20. capital — a city
  21. charge — a price
  22. bound — certain
  23. capital — a big letter
  24. trunk — of an elephant

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