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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 kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  2. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  3. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  4. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  5. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  6. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  7. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  8. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  9. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  10. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  11. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  12. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  13. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  14. How do you ________________ your surname?
  15. The tickets are free of ________________.
  16. Have you settled on a ________________?
  17. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  18. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  19. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  20. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  21. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  22. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  23. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  24. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.

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

Answer key

  1. scale — for weighing
  2. spell — magic
  3. charge — in control
  4. hand — in cards
  5. chair — to sit on
  6. hand — help
  7. field — farmland
  8. field — a subject
  9. charge — electricity
  10. hand — part of the body
  11. face — to point toward
  12. scale — in music
  13. date — on the calendar
  14. spell — letters
  15. charge — a price
  16. date — on the calendar
  17. spell — a short time
  18. field — for sport
  19. chair — a leader
  20. chair — a professorship
  21. face — part of the head
  22. date — the fruit
  23. scale — size or range
  24. face — to confront

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