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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. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  2. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  3. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  4. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  5. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  6. The tickets are free of ________________.
  7. Have you settled on a ________________?
  8. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  9. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  10. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  11. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  12. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  13. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  14. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  15. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  16. He works in a ________________ mill.
  17. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  18. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  19. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  20. She's very handy with a ________________.
  21. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  22. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  23. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  24. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.

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

Answer key

  1. chip — to eat
  2. charge — electricity
  3. capital — money
  4. track — a path
  5. present — a gift
  6. charge — a price
  7. date — on the calendar
  8. wax — to grow
  9. track — to keep track
  10. present — the time now
  11. capital — a big letter
  12. date — the fruit
  13. track — a song
  14. wax — in the ear
  15. present — there
  16. saw — the tool
  17. chip — in a computer
  18. date — on the calendar
  19. saw — past of 'see'
  20. saw — the tool
  21. capital — a city
  22. wax — for sculpting
  23. charge — in control
  24. chip — for betting

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