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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. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  2. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  3. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  4. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  5. The ________________ went through the wall.
  6. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  7. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  8. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  9. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  10. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  11. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  12. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  13. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  14. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  15. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  16. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  17. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  18. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  19. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  20. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  21. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  22. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  23. The tickets are free of ________________.
  24. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — from a university
  2. charge — electricity
  3. can — to be able to
  4. fall — to drop
  5. nail — for a hammer
  6. pitch — a sports field
  7. mine — for digging
  8. mine — belonging to me
  9. fall — to drop
  10. can — a tin
  11. nail — for a hammer
  12. pitch — a sales talk
  13. cap — a hat
  14. can — a tin
  15. degree — an amount
  16. nail — on a finger
  17. degree — temperature
  18. mine — an explosive
  19. pitch — completely
  20. cap — of ice
  21. charge — in control
  22. cap — a lid
  23. charge — a price
  24. fall — the season

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