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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. The tickets are free of ________________.
  2. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  3. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  4. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  5. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  6. Have you found your soul ________________?
  7. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  8. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  9. The water is too ________________.
  10. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  11. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  12. The light ________________ burned out.
  13. We're on a ________________ here.
  14. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  15. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  16. I've got to change the light ________________.
  17. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  18. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  19. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  20. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  21. The ________________ went through the wall.
  22. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  23. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  24. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — a price
  2. nail — on a finger
  3. racket — for tennis
  4. bulb — of a plant
  5. tear — to rip
  6. mate — a partner
  7. roll — a list
  8. charge — electricity
  9. cold — not warm
  10. mate — a friend
  11. racket — a loud noise
  12. bulb — for light
  13. roll — on a roll
  14. nail — for a hammer
  15. cold — the Cold War
  16. bulb — for light
  17. tear — from crying
  18. cold — an illness
  19. charge — in control
  20. racket — for tennis
  21. nail — for a hammer
  22. roll — a cake
  23. mate — to breed
  24. tear — from crying

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