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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. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  2. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  3. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  4. He was locked up in a ________________.
  5. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  6. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  7. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  8. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  9. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  10. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  11. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  12. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  13. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  14. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  15. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  16. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  17. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  18. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  19. The tickets are free of ________________.
  20. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  21. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  22. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  23. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  24. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — a phone
  2. chest — of your body
  3. track — a path
  4. cell — in a prison
  5. firm — a company
  6. charge — electricity
  7. charge — in control
  8. capital — a city
  9. track — to keep track
  10. firm — decided
  11. capital — money
  12. lash — to lash out
  13. cell — in biology
  14. lash — an eyelash
  15. file — a line of people
  16. track — a song
  17. chest — of your body
  18. file — a document
  19. charge — a price
  20. file — a tool
  21. chest — a box
  22. lash — a whip stroke
  23. firm — steady
  24. capital — a big letter

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