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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 120 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.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
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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. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  2. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  3. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  4. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  5. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  6. The tickets are free of ________________.
  7. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  8. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  9. Where did you ________________ them?
  10. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  11. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  12. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  13. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  14. My father caught me by the ________________.
  15. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  16. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  17. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  18. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  19. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  20. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  21. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  22. The water is too ________________.
  23. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  24. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.

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

Answer key

  1. mug — a face
  2. charge — electricity
  3. racket — for tennis
  4. charge — in control
  5. stem — a stem cell
  6. charge — a price
  7. racket — a loud noise
  8. arm — a part of something
  9. mug — to rob
  10. arm — part of the body
  11. present — the time now
  12. stem — of a plant
  13. present — there
  14. arm — part of the body
  15. stem — to come from
  16. mug — a cup
  17. racket — for tennis
  18. wind — moving air
  19. wind — to turn a key
  20. wind — moving air
  21. present — a gift
  22. cold — not warm
  23. cold — an illness
  24. cold — the Cold War

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