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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 potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  2. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  3. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  4. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  5. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  6. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  7. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  8. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  9. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  10. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  11. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  12. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  13. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  14. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  15. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  16. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  17. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  18. My mare is ________________ in color.
  19. The tickets are free of ________________.
  20. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  21. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  22. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  23. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  24. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chip — to eat
  2. mine — an explosive
  3. mine — for digging
  4. march — the month
  5. march — the month
  6. capital — a big letter
  7. charge — electricity
  8. march — music
  9. safe — out of danger
  10. cold — the Cold War
  11. capital — a city
  12. bay — to keep at bay
  13. mine — belonging to me
  14. safe — a strongbox
  15. chip — in a computer
  16. bay — a part of the sea
  17. cold — an illness
  18. bay — a horse colour
  19. charge — a price
  20. chip — for betting
  21. capital — money
  22. safe — out of danger
  23. charge — in control
  24. cold — not warm

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