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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 120 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. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  3. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  4. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  5. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  6. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  7. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  8. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  9. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  10. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  11. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  12. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  13. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  14. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  15. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  16. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  17. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  18. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  19. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  20. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  21. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  22. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  23. The King held a masked ________________.
  24. Where can I ________________ my mobile?

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

Answer key

  1. charge — a price
  2. cue — a hint
  3. chair — a leader
  4. fall — to drop
  5. cue — a signal
  6. rest — a break
  7. field — farmland
  8. fall — to drop
  9. snap — to snap out of it
  10. rest — what's left
  11. chair — a professorship
  12. ball — a great time
  13. snap — to click
  14. ball — a round shape
  15. field — a subject
  16. cue — for pool
  17. snap — to speak sharply
  18. chair — to sit on
  19. charge — in control
  20. rest — what's left
  21. field — for sport
  22. fall — the season
  23. ball — a dance
  24. charge — electricity

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