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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. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  2. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  3. The tickets are free of ________________.
  4. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  5. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  6. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  7. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  8. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  9. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  10. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  11. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  12. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  13. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  14. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  15. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  16. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  17. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  18. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  19. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  20. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  21. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  22. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  23. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  24. Beijing is the ________________ of China.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — to tire
  2. charge — electricity
  3. charge — a price
  4. scale — in music
  5. foot — a measure
  6. net — for catching
  7. net — in sport
  8. chest — of your body
  9. scale — size or range
  10. chest — a box
  11. pitch — a sports field
  12. bore — to drill
  13. chest — of your body
  14. net — after costs
  15. bore — gave birth
  16. capital — a big letter
  17. scale — for weighing
  18. foot — part of the body
  19. pitch — completely
  20. capital — money
  21. foot — the bottom
  22. charge — in control
  23. pitch — a sales talk
  24. capital — a city

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