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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 124 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. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  2. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  3. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  4. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  5. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  6. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  7. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  8. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  9. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  10. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  11. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  12. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  13. The tickets are free of ________________.
  14. He is an ace ________________.
  15. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  16. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  17. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  18. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  19. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  20. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  21. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  22. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  23. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  24. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. club — for dancing
  4. field — farmland
  5. kick — in football
  6. pass — to succeed
  7. charge — in control
  8. charge — electricity
  9. field — a subject
  10. pass — to spend time
  11. club — for golf
  12. snap — to speak sharply
  13. charge — a price
  14. pitcher — in baseball
  15. field — for sport
  16. file — a document
  17. file — a tool
  18. kick — a thrill
  19. kick — with a leg
  20. club — a group
  21. pass — a permit
  22. snap — to click
  23. file — a line of people
  24. snap — to snap out of it

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