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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. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  2. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  5. The tickets are free of ________________.
  6. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  7. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  8. Have you found your soul ________________?
  9. Where did you ________________ them?
  10. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  11. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  12. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  13. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  14. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  15. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  16. That was ________________ to happen.
  17. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  18. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  19. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  20. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  21. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  22. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  23. I'll be taking the ________________.
  24. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.

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

Answer key

  1. field — for sport
  2. charge — electricity
  3. field — farmland
  4. mug — a face
  5. charge — a price
  6. mug — a cup
  7. face — part of the head
  8. mate — a partner
  9. mug — to rob
  10. bound — obliged
  11. field — a subject
  12. mate — to breed
  13. straw — to clutch at straws
  14. straw — dry grass
  15. charge — in control
  16. bound — certain
  17. bound — tied together
  18. mate — a friend
  19. straw — a straw man
  20. face — to confront
  21. tube — a container
  22. face — to point toward
  23. tube — the underground
  24. tube — in a tire

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