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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. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  3. The tickets are free of ________________.
  4. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  5. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  6. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  7. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  8. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  9. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  10. That must've been a ________________.
  11. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  12. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  13. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  14. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  15. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  16. Have you found your soul ________________?
  17. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  18. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  19. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  20. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  21. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  22. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  23. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  24. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — electricity
  2. field — for sport
  3. charge — a price
  4. degree — temperature
  5. present — there
  6. rush — hurry
  7. present — the time now
  8. mate — to breed
  9. rush — to hurry
  10. rush — a thrill
  11. mate — a friend
  12. hand — in cards
  13. present — a gift
  14. charge — in control
  15. pit — in a race
  16. mate — a partner
  17. pit — a fruit stone
  18. degree — from a university
  19. field — a subject
  20. hand — part of the body
  21. pit — a hole
  22. degree — an amount
  23. hand — help
  24. field — farmland

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