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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. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  2. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  3. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  4. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  5. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  6. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  7. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  8. The tickets are free of ________________.
  9. Did you ________________ the meat?
  10. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  11. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  12. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  13. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  14. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  15. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  16. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  17. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  18. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  19. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  20. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  21. Where did you ________________ them?
  22. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  23. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  24. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. season — in sport
  2. net — in sport
  3. race — a contest
  4. mug — a cup
  5. season — of the year
  6. race — the arms race
  7. trunk — of a tree
  8. charge — a price
  9. season — to add flavour
  10. straw — to clutch at straws
  11. trunk — of a car
  12. march — the month
  13. march — music
  14. net — after costs
  15. race — humankind
  16. straw — a straw man
  17. trunk — of an elephant
  18. charge — electricity
  19. mug — a face
  20. straw — dry grass
  21. mug — to rob
  22. net — for catching
  23. charge — in control
  24. march — the month

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