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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 116 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. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  3. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  4. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  5. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  6. David sat on the ________________.
  7. How do you ________________ your surname?
  8. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  9. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  10. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  11. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  12. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  13. She's very handy with a ________________.
  14. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  15. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  16. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  17. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  18. He works in a ________________ mill.
  19. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  20. The tickets are free of ________________.
  21. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  22. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  23. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  24. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — electricity
  2. track — a song
  3. track — a path
  4. track — to keep track
  5. drill — a practice
  6. swing — to play on
  7. spell — letters
  8. saw — past of 'see'
  9. drill — the tool
  10. tear — from crying
  11. spell — magic
  12. charge — in control
  13. saw — the tool
  14. deal — to handle
  15. swing — in golf
  16. tear — from crying
  17. deal — a big deal
  18. saw — the tool
  19. drill — army training
  20. charge — a price
  21. spell — a short time
  22. deal — an agreement
  23. tear — to rip
  24. swing — music

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