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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 124 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's quite ________________, isn't he?
  2. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  3. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  4. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  5. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  6. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  7. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  8. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  9. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  10. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  11. David sat on the ________________.
  12. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  13. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  14. The tickets are free of ________________.
  15. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  16. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  17. It's one o'clock ________________.
  18. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  19. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  20. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  21. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  22. That was a fun ________________.
  23. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  24. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — clever
  2. sharp — with an edge
  3. kid — child
  4. game — a kind of play
  5. charge — electricity
  6. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  7. wake — before a funeral
  8. cap — a hat
  9. swing — music
  10. wake — a trail
  11. swing — to play on
  12. wake — to stop sleeping
  13. cap — a lid
  14. charge — a price
  15. pit — a hole
  16. swing — in golf
  17. sharp — exactly
  18. cap — of ice
  19. pit — in a race
  20. game — wild animals
  21. charge — in control
  22. game — a match
  23. pit — a fruit stone
  24. kid — to tease

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