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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 116 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. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  2. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  3. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  4. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  5. The tickets are free of ________________.
  6. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  7. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  8. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  9. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  10. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  11. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  12. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  13. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  14. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  15. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  16. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  17. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  18. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  19. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  20. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  21. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  22. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  23. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  24. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — a hint
  2. wind — to turn a key
  3. march — music
  4. racket — for tennis
  5. charge — a price
  6. content — videos and posts
  7. wind — moving air
  8. charge — in control
  9. field — for sport
  10. field — farmland
  11. march — the month
  12. content — the amount
  13. band — a rubber band
  14. cue — a signal
  15. band — a music group
  16. racket — a loud noise
  17. charge — electricity
  18. march — the month
  19. field — a subject
  20. cue — for pool
  21. band — a ring
  22. wind — moving air
  23. content — happy
  24. racket — for tennis

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