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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. I'll be taking the ________________.
  2. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  3. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  4. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  5. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  6. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  7. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  8. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  9. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  10. The tickets are free of ________________.
  11. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  12. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  13. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  14. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  15. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  16. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  17. He was locked up in a ________________.
  18. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  19. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  20. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  21. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  22. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  23. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  24. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — the underground
  2. charge — electricity
  3. track — a song
  4. present — a gift
  5. cell — in biology
  6. staff — employees
  7. present — there
  8. march — the month
  9. tube — in a tire
  10. charge — a price
  11. track — a path
  12. march — the month
  13. march — music
  14. staff — a stick
  15. tube — a container
  16. charge — in control
  17. cell — in a prison
  18. cell — a phone
  19. present — the time now
  20. patient — a sick person
  21. staff — employees
  22. track — to keep track
  23. patient — calm and waiting
  24. patient — a sick person

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