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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. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  2. The tickets are free of ________________.
  3. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  4. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  5. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  6. Where did you ________________ them?
  7. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  8. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  9. Have you settled on a ________________?
  10. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  11. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  12. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  13. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  14. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  17. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  18. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  19. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  20. The ________________ market has crashed.
  21. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  22. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  23. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  24. We had a fire ________________ at school today.

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

Answer key

  1. foot — a measure
  2. charge — a price
  3. charge — electricity
  4. foot — the bottom
  5. field — a subject
  6. mug — to rob
  7. stock — a soup base
  8. foot — part of the body
  9. date — on the calendar
  10. field — for sport
  11. scale — in music
  12. charge — in control
  13. date — the fruit
  14. drill — the tool
  15. field — farmland
  16. mug — a cup
  17. date — on the calendar
  18. drill — army training
  19. scale — size or range
  20. stock — shares
  21. stock — goods
  22. scale — for weighing
  23. mug — a face
  24. drill — a practice

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