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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 put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  3. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  4. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  5. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  6. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  7. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  8. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  9. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  10. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  11. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  12. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  13. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  14. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  15. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  16. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  17. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  18. Have you met the new head ________________?
  19. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  20. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  21. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  22. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  23. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  24. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — a price
  2. chair — to sit on
  3. charge — electricity
  4. coach — pulled by horses
  5. straw — a straw man
  6. chair — a professorship
  7. hand — part of the body
  8. chair — a leader
  9. club — for golf
  10. hand — help
  11. hand — in cards
  12. straw — to clutch at straws
  13. hide — animal skin
  14. hide — to keep secret
  15. cap — a lid
  16. hide — to keep secret
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. coach — a trainer
  19. club — for dancing
  20. cap — a hat
  21. cap — of ice
  22. straw — dry grass
  23. charge — in control
  24. club — a group

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