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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. The tickets are free of ________________.
  2. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  3. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  4. The ________________ took off on time.
  5. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  6. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  7. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  8. How do you ________________ your surname?
  9. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  10. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  11. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  12. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  13. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  14. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  15. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  16. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  17. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  18. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  19. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  20. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  21. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  22. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  23. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  24. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — a price
  2. wake — a trail
  3. drill — the tool
  4. plane — an aircraft
  5. chest — a box
  6. clip — a video
  7. firm — steady
  8. spell — letters
  9. wake — to stop sleeping
  10. plane — in geometry
  11. chest — of your body
  12. clip — for paper
  13. spell — a short time
  14. drill — army training
  15. firm — decided
  16. drill — a practice
  17. chest — of your body
  18. charge — in control
  19. spell — magic
  20. wake — before a funeral
  21. charge — electricity
  22. plane — a tool
  23. clip — to cut
  24. firm — a company

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