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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. The tickets are free of ________________.
  2. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  3. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  4. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  5. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  6. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  7. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  8. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  9. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  10. Have you settled on a ________________?
  11. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  12. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  13. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  14. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  15. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  16. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  17. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  18. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  19. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  20. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  21. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  22. When are we going to ________________?
  23. We're on a ________________ here.
  24. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — a price
  2. fork — a garden tool
  3. charge — electricity
  4. date — the fruit
  5. lash — an eyelash
  6. land — ground
  7. race — humankind
  8. pitch — a sales talk
  9. pitch — a sports field
  10. date — on the calendar
  11. roll — a cake
  12. land — a country
  13. charge — in control
  14. fork — to eat with
  15. pitch — completely
  16. lash — to lash out
  17. fork — in a road
  18. lash — a whip stroke
  19. date — on the calendar
  20. race — the arms race
  21. roll — a list
  22. land — to come down
  23. roll — on a roll
  24. race — a contest

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