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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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Word bank
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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. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  3. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  4. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  5. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  6. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  7. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  8. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  9. He was locked up in a ________________.
  10. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  11. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  12. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  13. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  14. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  15. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  16. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  17. That was a fun ________________.
  18. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  19. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  20. This piece is in a major ________________.
  21. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  22. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  23. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  24. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — a price
  2. charge — electricity
  3. fall — to drop
  4. cell — a phone
  5. dip — a sauce
  6. fall — the season
  7. dip — to sink
  8. game — a kind of play
  9. cell — in a prison
  10. wave — of the sea
  11. fall — to drop
  12. lean — to rest against
  13. wave — with your hand
  14. key — the most important part
  15. lean — thin
  16. lean — to bend
  17. game — a match
  18. cell — in biology
  19. wave — a sudden rise
  20. key — in music
  21. key — for a lock
  22. charge — in control
  23. game — wild animals
  24. dip — to dunk

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