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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. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  2. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  3. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  4. Where did you ________________ them?
  5. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  6. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  7. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  8. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  9. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  10. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  11. How do you ________________ your surname?
  12. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  13. The tickets are free of ________________.
  14. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  15. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  16. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  17. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  18. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  19. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  20. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  21. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  22. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  23. He was locked up in a ________________.
  24. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. charge — electricity
  3. mug — a cup
  4. mug — to rob
  5. bark — of a tree
  6. spell — magic
  7. kick — a thrill
  8. snap — to snap out of it
  9. cell — in biology
  10. charge — in control
  11. spell — letters
  12. cell — a phone
  13. charge — a price
  14. racket — a loud noise
  15. snap — to speak sharply
  16. kick — in football
  17. mug — a face
  18. snap — to click
  19. racket — for tennis
  20. spell — a short time
  21. bark — a dog's sound
  22. kick — with a leg
  23. cell — in a prison
  24. bark — to shout

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