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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 116 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. This piece is in a major ________________.
  3. The tickets are free of ________________.
  4. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  5. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  6. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  7. She's very handy with a ________________.
  8. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  9. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  10. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  11. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  12. David sat on the ________________.
  13. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  14. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  15. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  16. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  17. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  18. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  19. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  20. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  21. He works in a ________________ mill.
  22. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  23. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  24. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — electricity
  2. key — in music
  3. charge — a price
  4. chair — a professorship
  5. key — for a lock
  6. file — a line of people
  7. saw — the tool
  8. key — the most important part
  9. bark — of a tree
  10. saw — past of 'see'
  11. swing — music
  12. swing — to play on
  13. file — a tool
  14. staff — employees
  15. bark — to shout
  16. staff — a stick
  17. bark — a dog's sound
  18. charge — in control
  19. chair — to sit on
  20. chair — a leader
  21. saw — the tool
  22. swing — in golf
  23. file — a document
  24. staff — employees

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