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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. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  2. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  3. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  4. The ________________ went through the wall.
  5. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  6. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  7. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  8. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  9. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  10. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  11. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  12. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  13. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  14. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  15. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  16. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  17. The tickets are free of ________________.
  18. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  19. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  20. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  21. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  22. When are we going to ________________?
  23. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  24. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.

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

Answer key

  1. net — after costs
  2. charge — electricity
  3. face — part of the head
  4. nail — for a hammer
  5. charge — in control
  6. land — a country
  7. club — a group
  8. pass — a permit
  9. face — to confront
  10. land — ground
  11. chest — of your body
  12. pass — to succeed
  13. chest — of your body
  14. club — for dancing
  15. net — in sport
  16. face — to point toward
  17. charge — a price
  18. pass — to spend time
  19. chest — a box
  20. club — for golf
  21. net — for catching
  22. land — to come down
  23. nail — for a hammer
  24. nail — on a finger

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