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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 tickets are free of ________________.
  2. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  3. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  4. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  5. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  6. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  7. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  8. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  9. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  10. That was ________________ to happen.
  11. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  12. Don't do anything ________________.
  13. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  14. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  15. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  16. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  17. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  18. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  19. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  20. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  21. He was locked up in a ________________.
  22. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  23. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  24. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — a price
  2. wound — an injury
  3. lean — to bend
  4. cell — a phone
  5. lean — to rest against
  6. wound — past of 'wind'
  7. bound — obliged
  8. wound — an injury
  9. cell — in biology
  10. bound — certain
  11. charge — in control
  12. rash — hasty
  13. rash — a series
  14. charge — electricity
  15. bound — tied together
  16. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  17. rash — on the skin
  18. kid — child
  19. lean — thin
  20. perch — for a bird
  21. cell — in a prison
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. kid — to tease
  24. perch — the fish

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