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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. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  2. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  3. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  4. I'll be taking the ________________.
  5. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  6. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  7. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  8. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  9. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  10. The tickets are free of ________________.
  11. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  12. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  13. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  14. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  15. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  16. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  17. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  18. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  19. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  20. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  21. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  22. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  23. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  24. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — in control
  2. rule — government
  3. march — the month
  4. tube — the underground
  5. tube — a container
  6. degree — an amount
  7. row — to paddle
  8. charge — electricity
  9. capital — money
  10. charge — a price
  11. capital — a city
  12. march — music
  13. degree — from a university
  14. tube — in a tire
  15. capital — a big letter
  16. degree — temperature
  17. chair — a professorship
  18. rule — a law
  19. march — the month
  20. row — a quarrel
  21. chair — to sit on
  22. chair — a leader
  23. rule — to rule out
  24. row — a line

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