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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. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  2. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  3. When are we going to ________________?
  4. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  5. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  6. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  7. There's no middle ________________.
  8. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  9. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  10. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  11. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  12. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  13. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  14. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  15. The tickets are free of ________________.
  16. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  17. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  18. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  19. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  20. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  21. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  22. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  23. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  24. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a song
  2. ground — crushed
  3. land — to come down
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. land — a country
  6. track — to keep track
  7. ground — a position
  8. fan — a supporter
  9. face — to confront
  10. charge — electricity
  11. chair — a professorship
  12. chair — a leader
  13. face — to point toward
  14. wake — a trail
  15. charge — a price
  16. track — a path
  17. land — ground
  18. fan — to cool the air
  19. face — part of the head
  20. chair — to sit on
  21. ground — the earth
  22. wake — before a funeral
  23. wake — to stop sleeping
  24. charge — in control

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