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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. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  2. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  3. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  6. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  7. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  8. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  9. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  10. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  11. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  12. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  13. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  14. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  15. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  16. The tickets are free of ________________.
  17. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  18. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  19. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  20. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  21. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  22. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  23. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  24. Beijing is the ________________ of China.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — in control
  2. bat — the animal
  3. march — the month
  4. capital — money
  5. bat — for baseball
  6. capital — a big letter
  7. shower — rain
  8. bat — in an idiom
  9. march — music
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. shower — a meteor shower
  13. race — the arms race
  14. calf — of the leg
  15. charge — electricity
  16. charge — a price
  17. race — humankind
  18. race — a contest
  19. calf — a young animal
  20. shower — to wash
  21. perch — the fish
  22. march — the month
  23. calf — a young animal
  24. capital — a city

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