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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 tickets are free of ________________.
  2. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  3. The ball is in your ________________.
  4. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  5. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  6. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  7. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  8. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  9. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  10. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  11. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  12. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  13. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  14. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  15. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  16. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  17. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  18. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  19. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  20. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  21. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  22. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  23. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  24. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — a price
  2. clip — a video
  3. court — for sport
  4. pass — to succeed
  5. chair — a leader
  6. race — the arms race
  7. chair — to sit on
  8. court — of a king
  9. race — a contest
  10. court — of law
  11. board — to get on
  12. charge — in control
  13. board — a flat piece
  14. pass — a permit
  15. band — a music group
  16. clip — to cut
  17. band — a rubber band
  18. band — a ring
  19. board — a committee
  20. chair — a professorship
  21. charge — electricity
  22. race — humankind
  23. clip — for paper
  24. pass — to spend time

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