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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. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  2. The tickets are free of ________________.
  3. Did you ________________ the meat?
  4. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  5. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  6. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  7. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  8. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  9. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  10. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  11. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  12. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  13. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  14. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  15. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  16. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  17. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  18. We're on a ________________ here.
  19. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  20. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  21. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  22. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  23. What do you think of the new ________________?
  24. She's sitting on a gold ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — electricity
  2. charge — a price
  3. season — to add flavour
  4. march — music
  5. shower — a meteor shower
  6. mark — a grade
  7. march — the month
  8. season — in sport
  9. mine — belonging to me
  10. roll — a list
  11. mine — an explosive
  12. season — of the year
  13. charge — in control
  14. march — the month
  15. shower — to wash
  16. mark — a trace
  17. cabinet — a cupboard
  18. roll — on a roll
  19. mark — to pay attention
  20. cabinet — ministers
  21. shower — rain
  22. roll — a cake
  23. cabinet — ministers
  24. mine — for digging

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