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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. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  2. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  3. You don't need to ________________ round.
  4. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  5. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  6. He works in a ________________ mill.
  7. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  8. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  9. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  10. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  11. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  12. We're almost out of ________________.
  13. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  14. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  15. There's no middle ________________.
  16. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  17. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  18. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  19. The tickets are free of ________________.
  20. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  21. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  22. She's very handy with a ________________.
  23. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  24. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — electricity
  2. kid — to tease
  3. pop — to visit
  4. cap — of ice
  5. cap — a lid
  6. saw — the tool
  7. wake — a trail
  8. cap — a hat
  9. pop — music
  10. kid — child
  11. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  12. pop — soda
  13. craft — a skill
  14. craft — boats
  15. ground — a position
  16. ground — the earth
  17. wake — to stop sleeping
  18. craft — a handicraft
  19. charge — a price
  20. wake — before a funeral
  21. charge — in control
  22. saw — the tool
  23. ground — crushed
  24. saw — past of 'see'

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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