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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. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  2. The tickets are free of ________________.
  3. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  4. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  5. She's very handy with a ________________.
  6. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  7. Where did you ________________ them?
  8. There's no middle ________________.
  9. Did you ________________ the meat?
  10. He works in a ________________ mill.
  11. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  12. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  13. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  14. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  15. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  16. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  17. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  18. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  19. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  20. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  21. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  22. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  23. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  24. He refilled his coffee ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a fruit stone
  2. charge — a price
  3. charge — electricity
  4. season — in sport
  5. saw — the tool
  6. ground — the earth
  7. mug — to rob
  8. ground — a position
  9. season — to add flavour
  10. saw — the tool
  11. saw — past of 'see'
  12. content — the amount
  13. season — of the year
  14. clip — for paper
  15. mug — a face
  16. content — happy
  17. clip — to cut
  18. pit — in a race
  19. pit — a hole
  20. clip — a video
  21. ground — crushed
  22. charge — in control
  23. content — videos and posts
  24. mug — a cup

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