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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.

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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. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  2. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  3. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  4. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  5. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  6. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  7. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  8. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  9. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  10. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  11. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  12. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  13. Have you found your soul ________________?
  14. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  15. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  16. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  17. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  18. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  19. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  20. The tickets are free of ________________.
  21. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  22. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  23. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  24. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?

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

Answer key

  1. charge — electricity
  2. object — a thing
  3. lean — thin
  4. wind — moving air
  5. mate — to breed
  6. dip — to dunk
  7. mate — a friend
  8. lean — to rest against
  9. cap — of ice
  10. object — to protest
  11. wind — to turn a key
  12. lean — to bend
  13. mate — a partner
  14. wound — past of 'wind'
  15. wound — an injury
  16. dip — a sauce
  17. dip — to sink
  18. wind — moving air
  19. wound — an injury
  20. charge — a price
  21. cap — a hat
  22. charge — in control
  23. object — an aim
  24. cap — a lid

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