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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. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  3. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  4. There's no middle ________________.
  5. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  6. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  7. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  8. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  9. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  10. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  11. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  12. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  13. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  14. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  15. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  16. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  17. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  18. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  19. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  20. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  21. False peace will not ________________.
  22. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  23. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  24. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — a price
  2. last — final
  3. ground — the earth
  4. ground — a position
  5. bat — for baseball
  6. bat — in an idiom
  7. wind — moving air
  8. rest — what's left
  9. wind — moving air
  10. bat — the animal
  11. charge — in control
  12. rest — a break
  13. bore — to drill
  14. last — finally
  15. bore — gave birth
  16. hand — help
  17. ground — crushed
  18. charge — electricity
  19. wind — to turn a key
  20. rest — what's left
  21. last — to go on
  22. hand — in cards
  23. bore — to tire
  24. hand — part of the body

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