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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 ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  3. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  4. We're on a ________________ here.
  5. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  6. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  7. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  8. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  9. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  10. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  11. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  12. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  13. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  14. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  15. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  16. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  17. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  18. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  19. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  20. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  21. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  22. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  23. The tickets are free of ________________.
  24. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — electricity
  2. bat — the animal
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. roll — on a roll
  5. fan — to cool the air
  6. tear — from crying
  7. wave — with your hand
  8. roll — a cake
  9. charge — in control
  10. bat — in an idiom
  11. bat — for baseball
  12. wave — of the sea
  13. band — a music group
  14. kick — with a leg
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. band — a rubber band
  17. kick — in football
  18. roll — a list
  19. tear — from crying
  20. kick — a thrill
  21. band — a ring
  22. wave — a sudden rise
  23. charge — a price
  24. tear — to rip

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