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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. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  2. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  3. The water is too ________________.
  4. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  5. The tickets are free of ________________.
  6. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  7. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  8. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  9. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  10. The ________________ went through the wall.
  11. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  12. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  13. That was a fun ________________.
  14. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  15. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  16. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  17. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  18. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  19. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  20. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  21. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  22. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  23. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  24. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — the animal
  2. charge — in control
  3. cold — not warm
  4. game — wild animals
  5. charge — a price
  6. wax — to grow
  7. pound — for dogs
  8. cold — the Cold War
  9. bat — in an idiom
  10. nail — for a hammer
  11. deal — a big deal
  12. charge — electricity
  13. game — a match
  14. nail — for a hammer
  15. deal — to handle
  16. game — a kind of play
  17. cold — an illness
  18. wax — for sculpting
  19. wax — in the ear
  20. deal — an agreement
  21. nail — on a finger
  22. bat — for baseball
  23. pound — a weight
  24. pound — to hit hard

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