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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. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  2. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  3. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  4. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  5. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  6. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  7. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  8. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  9. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  10. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  11. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  12. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  13. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  14. When are we going to ________________?
  15. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  16. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  17. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  18. That was a fun ________________.
  19. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  20. Have you settled on a ________________?
  21. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  22. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  23. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  24. The tickets are free of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — electricity
  2. capital — money
  3. capital — a big letter
  4. charge — in control
  5. date — on the calendar
  6. shower — rain
  7. fan — to cool the air
  8. date — the fruit
  9. game — wild animals
  10. capital — a city
  11. board — a flat piece
  12. shower — to wash
  13. land — ground
  14. land — to come down
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. shower — a meteor shower
  17. board — to get on
  18. game — a match
  19. game — a kind of play
  20. date — on the calendar
  21. land — a country
  22. board — a committee
  23. fan — a supporter
  24. charge — a price

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