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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 116 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. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  2. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  3. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  4. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  5. That was a fun ________________.
  6. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  7. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  8. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  9. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  10. He was locked up in a ________________.
  11. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  12. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  13. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  14. The tickets are free of ________________.
  15. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  16. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  17. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  18. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  19. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  20. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  21. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  22. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  23. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  24. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — in control
  2. club — for dancing
  3. game — a kind of play
  4. content — videos and posts
  5. game — a match
  6. hide — to keep secret
  7. straw — to clutch at straws
  8. hide — animal skin
  9. race — humankind
  10. cell — in a prison
  11. game — wild animals
  12. cell — in biology
  13. club — a group
  14. charge — a price
  15. straw — a straw man
  16. content — happy
  17. content — the amount
  18. straw — dry grass
  19. club — for golf
  20. charge — electricity
  21. race — a contest
  22. cell — a phone
  23. hide — to keep secret
  24. race — the arms race

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