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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.

Make a worksheet

Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
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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. He was locked up in a ________________.
  3. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  4. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  5. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  6. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  7. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  8. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  9. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  10. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  11. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  12. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  13. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  14. Have you met the new head ________________?
  15. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  16. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  17. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  18. The tickets are free of ________________.
  19. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  20. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  21. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  22. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  23. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  24. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — electricity
  2. cell — in a prison
  3. lash — a whip stroke
  4. march — music
  5. row — a quarrel
  6. coach — a trainer
  7. march — the month
  8. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  9. wave — with your hand
  10. wave — of the sea
  11. row — to paddle
  12. kid — to tease
  13. lash — to lash out
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. row — a line
  16. wave — a sudden rise
  17. march — the month
  18. charge — a price
  19. coach — pulled by horses
  20. lash — an eyelash
  21. cell — in biology
  22. cell — a phone
  23. charge — in control
  24. kid — child

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