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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. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  3. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  4. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  5. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  6. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  7. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  8. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  9. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  10. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  11. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  12. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  13. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  14. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  15. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  16. He is an ace ________________.
  17. He was locked up in a ________________.
  18. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  19. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  20. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  21. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  22. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  23. Where did you ________________ them?
  24. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — a price
  2. wind — moving air
  3. bat — the animal
  4. mug — a cup
  5. fall — the season
  6. fall — to drop
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. wind — moving air
  9. bat — for baseball
  10. charge — in control
  11. fall — to drop
  12. craft — a skill
  13. charge — electricity
  14. bat — in an idiom
  15. cell — a phone
  16. pitcher — in baseball
  17. cell — in a prison
  18. craft — boats
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. craft — a handicraft
  21. cell — in biology
  22. wind — to turn a key
  23. mug — to rob
  24. mug — a face

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