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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 got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  2. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  3. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  4. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  5. He was locked up in a ________________.
  6. The tickets are free of ________________.
  7. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  8. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  9. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  10. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  11. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  12. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  13. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  14. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  15. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  16. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  17. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  18. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  19. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  20. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  21. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  22. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  23. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  24. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — a penalty
  2. march — the month
  3. mouse — for a computer
  4. kick — a thrill
  5. cell — in a prison
  6. charge — a price
  7. mouse — the animal
  8. fine — all right
  9. charge — electricity
  10. march — the month
  11. cell — a phone
  12. fine — high quality
  13. drill — army training
  14. drill — the tool
  15. file — a line of people
  16. file — a tool
  17. drill — a practice
  18. cell — in biology
  19. mouse — the animal
  20. file — a document
  21. charge — in control
  22. kick — in football
  23. kick — with a leg
  24. march — music

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