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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. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  2. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  3. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  4. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  5. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  6. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  7. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  8. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  9. The ________________ market has crashed.
  10. The tickets are free of ________________.
  11. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  12. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  13. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  14. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  15. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  16. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  17. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  18. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  19. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  20. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  21. False peace will not ________________.
  22. How do you ________________ your surname?
  23. Did you ________________ the button?
  24. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — electricity
  2. stock — a soup base
  3. bat — for baseball
  4. stock — goods
  5. press — a publisher
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. spell — a short time
  8. spell — magic
  9. stock — shares
  10. charge — a price
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. charge — in control
  13. last — finally
  14. bat — the animal
  15. bat — in an idiom
  16. perch — the fish
  17. press — newspapers
  18. last — final
  19. patient — a sick person
  20. patient — calm and waiting
  21. last — to go on
  22. spell — letters
  23. press — to push
  24. perch — for a bird

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