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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. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  2. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  3. The ________________ market has crashed.
  4. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  5. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  6. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  7. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  10. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  11. The tickets are free of ________________.
  12. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  13. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  14. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  15. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  16. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  17. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  18. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  19. How do you ________________ your surname?
  20. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  21. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  22. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  23. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  24. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — electricity
  2. cap — a lid
  3. stock — shares
  4. spell — magic
  5. charge — in control
  6. field — farmland
  7. field — a subject
  8. field — for sport
  9. chip — to eat
  10. staff — a stick
  11. charge — a price
  12. cap — a hat
  13. cap — of ice
  14. chip — for betting
  15. spell — a short time
  16. staff — employees
  17. craft — a skill
  18. chip — in a computer
  19. spell — letters
  20. craft — a handicraft
  21. stock — goods
  22. stock — a soup base
  23. staff — employees
  24. craft — boats

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