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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. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  2. Have you met the new head ________________?
  3. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  4. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  5. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  6. The water is too ________________.
  7. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  8. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  9. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  10. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  11. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  12. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  13. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  14. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  15. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  16. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  17. Where did you ________________ them?
  18. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  19. The tickets are free of ________________.
  20. The ________________ took off on time.
  21. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  22. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  23. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  24. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — in control
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. cold — an illness
  4. march — the month
  5. clip — for paper
  6. cold — not warm
  7. mug — a face
  8. board — to get on
  9. board — a committee
  10. plane — a tool
  11. board — a flat piece
  12. march — music
  13. plane — in geometry
  14. charge — electricity
  15. march — the month
  16. mug — a cup
  17. mug — to rob
  18. coach — pulled by horses
  19. charge — a price
  20. plane — an aircraft
  21. clip — a video
  22. clip — to cut
  23. cold — the Cold War
  24. coach — a trainer

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