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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 hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  3. That was a fun ________________.
  4. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  5. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  6. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  7. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  8. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  9. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  10. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  11. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  12. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  13. Have you met the new head ________________?
  14. He was locked up in a ________________.
  15. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  16. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  17. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  18. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  19. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  20. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  21. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  22. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  23. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  24. Did you ________________ the button?

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

Answer key

  1. charge — a price
  2. lie — to recline
  3. game — a match
  4. file — a line of people
  5. file — a document
  6. cell — a phone
  7. coach — pulled by horses
  8. lie — an untruth
  9. coach — a trainer
  10. charge — electricity
  11. kid — child
  12. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. cell — in a prison
  15. press — a publisher
  16. press — newspapers
  17. kid — to tease
  18. file — a tool
  19. cell — in biology
  20. charge — in control
  21. game — a kind of play
  22. game — wild animals
  23. lie — an untruth
  24. press — to push

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