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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. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  2. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  3. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  4. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  5. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  6. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  7. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  8. The ball is in your ________________.
  9. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  10. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  11. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  12. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  13. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  14. The tickets are free of ________________.
  15. The water is too ________________.
  16. How do you ________________ your surname?
  17. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  18. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  19. My father caught me by the ________________.
  20. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  21. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  22. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  23. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  24. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — electricity
  2. spell — a short time
  3. bowl — a dish
  4. club — a group
  5. fall — to drop
  6. fall — the season
  7. arm — part of the body
  8. court — for sport
  9. club — for dancing
  10. charge — in control
  11. bowl — to roll
  12. spell — magic
  13. court — of law
  14. charge — a price
  15. cold — not warm
  16. spell — letters
  17. bowl — a football final
  18. club — for golf
  19. arm — part of the body
  20. fall — to drop
  21. court — of a king
  22. arm — a part of something
  23. cold — the Cold War
  24. cold — an illness

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