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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. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  2. He is an ace ________________.
  3. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  4. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  5. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  6. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  7. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  8. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  9. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  10. Have you settled on a ________________?
  11. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  12. The tickets are free of ________________.
  13. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  14. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  15. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  16. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  17. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  18. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  19. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  20. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  21. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  22. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  23. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  24. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — a thrill
  2. pitcher — in baseball
  3. mine — belonging to me
  4. date — on the calendar
  5. file — a document
  6. mine — for digging
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. kick — in football
  9. charge — in control
  10. date — on the calendar
  11. rest — what's left
  12. charge — a price
  13. file — a tool
  14. rest — a break
  15. lie — an untruth
  16. mine — an explosive
  17. lie — to recline
  18. charge — electricity
  19. date — the fruit
  20. kick — with a leg
  21. lie — an untruth
  22. rest — what's left
  23. file — a line of people
  24. pitcher — a jug

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