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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 120 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. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  3. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  4. The tickets are free of ________________.
  5. What do you think of the new ________________?
  6. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  7. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  8. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  9. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  10. The ________________ market has crashed.
  11. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  12. There's no middle ________________.
  13. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  14. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  15. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  16. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  17. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  18. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  19. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  20. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  21. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  22. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  23. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  24. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — electricity
  2. charge — in control
  3. racket — a loud noise
  4. charge — a price
  5. cabinet — ministers
  6. scale — size or range
  7. wind — moving air
  8. cabinet — ministers
  9. wind — to turn a key
  10. stock — shares
  11. racket — for tennis
  12. ground — a position
  13. chip — to eat
  14. racket — for tennis
  15. wind — moving air
  16. stock — a soup base
  17. ground — crushed
  18. chip — for betting
  19. scale — for weighing
  20. chip — in a computer
  21. cabinet — a cupboard
  22. scale — in music
  23. stock — goods
  24. ground — the earth

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