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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. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  3. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  4. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  5. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  6. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  7. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  8. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  9. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  10. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  11. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  12. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  13. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  14. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  15. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  16. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  17. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  18. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  19. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  20. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  21. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  22. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  23. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  24. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — a price
  2. club — for golf
  3. charge — electricity
  4. kid — child
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. fan — to cool the air
  7. patient — a sick person
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. tear — to rip
  10. squash — the sport
  11. squash — the vegetable
  12. club — for dancing
  13. chair — a leader
  14. chair — to sit on
  15. kid — to tease
  16. charge — in control
  17. patient — calm and waiting
  18. tear — from crying
  19. club — a group
  20. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  21. fan — a supporter
  22. squash — to crush
  23. tear — from crying
  24. chair — a professorship

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