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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 120 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 ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  2. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  3. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  4. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  5. The tickets are free of ________________.
  6. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  7. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  8. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  9. Don't do anything ________________.
  10. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  11. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  12. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  13. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  14. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  15. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  16. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  17. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  18. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  19. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  20. He is an ace ________________.
  21. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  22. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  23. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  24. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — the animal
  2. kick — in football
  3. kick — a thrill
  4. charge — in control
  5. charge — a price
  6. chair — a professorship
  7. bass — low music
  8. bat — for baseball
  9. rash — hasty
  10. chair — to sit on
  11. bass — the instrument
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. bat — in an idiom
  15. content — the amount
  16. charge — electricity
  17. kick — with a leg
  18. chair — a leader
  19. content — happy
  20. pitcher — in baseball
  21. bass — the fish
  22. rash — on the skin
  23. content — videos and posts
  24. rash — a series

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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