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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. The tickets are free of ________________.
  2. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  3. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  4. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  5. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  6. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  7. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  8. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  9. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  10. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  11. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  12. We're on a ________________ here.
  13. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  14. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  15. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  16. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  17. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  18. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  19. The ball is in your ________________.
  20. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  21. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  22. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  23. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  24. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — a price
  2. stick — a piece of wood
  3. roll — a cake
  4. stick — a piece of wood
  5. bear — the animal
  6. content — happy
  7. content — the amount
  8. court — of law
  9. row — a quarrel
  10. bear — to put up with
  11. court — of a king
  12. roll — on a roll
  13. row — to paddle
  14. bear — the animal
  15. row — a line
  16. content — videos and posts
  17. club — for golf
  18. stick — to attach or keep to
  19. court — for sport
  20. club — a group
  21. charge — in control
  22. charge — electricity
  23. roll — a list
  24. club — for dancing

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