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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. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  2. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  3. He was locked up in a ________________.
  4. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  5. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  6. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  7. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  8. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  9. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  10. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  11. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  12. Don't do anything ________________.
  13. I'll be taking the ________________.
  14. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  15. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  16. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  17. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  18. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  19. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  20. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  21. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  22. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  23. The tickets are free of ________________.
  24. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. firm — a company
  2. charge — electricity
  3. cell — in a prison
  4. tube — in a tire
  5. cell — a phone
  6. file — a document
  7. file — a tool
  8. charge — in control
  9. cell — in biology
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. perch — the fish
  12. rash — hasty
  13. tube — the underground
  14. fan — a supporter
  15. tube — a container
  16. fan — to cool the air
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. firm — steady
  19. fan — a supporter
  20. rash — on the skin
  21. rash — a series
  22. firm — decided
  23. charge — a price
  24. file — a line of people

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