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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. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  2. My father caught me by the ________________.
  3. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  4. The tickets are free of ________________.
  5. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  6. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  7. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  8. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  9. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  10. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  11. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  12. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  13. That was a fun ________________.
  14. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  15. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  16. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  17. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  18. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  19. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  20. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  21. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  22. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  23. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  24. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a tool
  2. arm — part of the body
  3. charge — electricity
  4. charge — a price
  5. wave — with your hand
  6. capital — money
  7. game — wild animals
  8. capital — a big letter
  9. arm — part of the body
  10. game — a kind of play
  11. branch — a division
  12. capital — a city
  13. game — a match
  14. file — a line of people
  15. branch — of a bank
  16. wake — before a funeral
  17. wake — a trail
  18. branch — of a tree
  19. wave — of the sea
  20. arm — a part of something
  21. wave — a sudden rise
  22. file — a document
  23. wake — to stop sleeping
  24. charge — in control

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