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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. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  2. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  3. Have you met the new head ________________?
  4. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  5. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  6. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  7. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  8. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  9. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  10. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  11. The tickets are free of ________________.
  12. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  13. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  14. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  15. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  16. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  17. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  18. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  19. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  20. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  21. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  22. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  23. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  24. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — pulled by horses
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  6. degree — from a university
  7. pass — to succeed
  8. degree — an amount
  9. pass — to spend time
  10. degree — temperature
  11. charge — a price
  12. row — a quarrel
  13. charge — electricity
  14. fan — to cool the air
  15. object — an aim
  16. row — a line
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. object — a thing
  19. object — to protest
  20. charge — in control
  21. pass — a permit
  22. row — to paddle
  23. kid — to tease
  24. kid — child

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