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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. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  2. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  3. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  4. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  5. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  6. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  7. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  8. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  9. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  10. Don't do anything ________________.
  11. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  12. It's one o'clock ________________.
  13. He was locked up in a ________________.
  14. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  15. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  16. The tickets are free of ________________.
  17. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  18. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  19. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  20. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  21. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  22. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  23. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  24. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — a phone
  2. pit — in a race
  3. safe — out of danger
  4. charge — in control
  5. chair — a professorship
  6. charge — electricity
  7. tear — to rip
  8. pit — a hole
  9. pit — a fruit stone
  10. rash — hasty
  11. safe — out of danger
  12. sharp — exactly
  13. cell — in a prison
  14. cell — in biology
  15. rash — on the skin
  16. charge — a price
  17. tear — from crying
  18. tear — from crying
  19. sharp — clever
  20. safe — a strongbox
  21. chair — a leader
  22. chair — to sit on
  23. sharp — with an edge
  24. rash — a series

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