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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. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  2. When are we going to ________________?
  3. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  4. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  5. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  6. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  7. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  8. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  9. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  10. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  11. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  12. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  13. Have you found your soul ________________?
  14. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  15. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  16. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  17. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  18. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  19. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  20. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  21. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  22. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  23. What do you think of the new ________________?
  24. The tickets are free of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — the animal
  2. land — to come down
  3. wound — an injury
  4. mate — a friend
  5. mate — to breed
  6. charge — in control
  7. cabinet — ministers
  8. cabinet — a cupboard
  9. charge — electricity
  10. bat — in an idiom
  11. stick — to attach or keep to
  12. scale — size or range
  13. mate — a partner
  14. stick — a piece of wood
  15. land — ground
  16. wound — past of 'wind'
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. wound — an injury
  19. bat — for baseball
  20. scale — for weighing
  21. scale — in music
  22. land — a country
  23. cabinet — ministers
  24. charge — a price

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