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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. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  2. The tickets are free of ________________.
  3. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  4. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  5. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  6. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  7. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  8. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  9. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  10. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  11. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  12. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  13. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  14. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  15. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  16. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  17. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  18. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  19. He is an ace ________________.
  20. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  21. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  22. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  23. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  24. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to speak sharply
  2. charge — a price
  3. track — to keep track
  4. track — a path
  5. wind — moving air
  6. snap — to click
  7. wind — to turn a key
  8. club — for dancing
  9. charge — in control
  10. snap — to snap out of it
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. present — the time now
  13. track — a song
  14. mine — belonging to me
  15. club — for golf
  16. wind — moving air
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. mine — for digging
  19. pitcher — in baseball
  20. present — there
  21. mine — an explosive
  22. present — a gift
  23. charge — electricity
  24. club — a group

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