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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 124 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. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  3. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  4. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  5. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  6. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  7. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  8. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  9. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  10. The ________________ went through the wall.
  11. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  12. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  13. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  14. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  15. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  16. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  17. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  18. The tickets are free of ________________.
  19. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  20. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  21. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  22. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  23. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  24. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — electricity
  2. deal — to handle
  3. wind — moving air
  4. deal — an agreement
  5. club — for dancing
  6. charge — in control
  7. nail — for a hammer
  8. deal — a big deal
  9. wind — to turn a key
  10. nail — for a hammer
  11. club — for golf
  12. mine — for digging
  13. current — happening now
  14. drill — army training
  15. wind — moving air
  16. current — of water
  17. drill — a practice
  18. charge — a price
  19. club — a group
  20. nail — on a finger
  21. drill — the tool
  22. mine — an explosive
  23. mine — belonging to me
  24. current — electric

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