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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. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  2. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  3. The tickets are free of ________________.
  4. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  5. She's very handy with a ________________.
  6. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  7. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  8. How do you ________________ your surname?
  9. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  10. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  11. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  12. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  13. False peace will not ________________.
  14. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  15. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  16. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  17. He works in a ________________ mill.
  18. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  19. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  20. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  21. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  22. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  23. I'll be taking the ________________.
  24. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — magic
  2. charge — electricity
  3. charge — a price
  4. pass — to spend time
  5. saw — the tool
  6. field — a subject
  7. last — final
  8. spell — letters
  9. wound — an injury
  10. pass — a permit
  11. field — farmland
  12. field — for sport
  13. last — to go on
  14. wound — past of 'wind'
  15. charge — in control
  16. pass — to succeed
  17. saw — the tool
  18. wound — an injury
  19. tube — a container
  20. spell — a short time
  21. saw — past of 'see'
  22. last — finally
  23. tube — the underground
  24. tube — in a tire

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