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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. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  2. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  3. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  4. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  5. This piece is in a major ________________.
  6. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  7. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  8. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  9. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  10. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  11. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  12. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  13. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  14. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  15. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  16. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  17. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  18. The tickets are free of ________________.
  19. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  20. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  21. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  22. That was a fun ________________.
  23. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  24. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — electricity
  2. game — wild animals
  3. hand — help
  4. capital — a big letter
  5. key — in music
  6. racket — for tennis
  7. hand — part of the body
  8. chair — a leader
  9. capital — a city
  10. racket — for tennis
  11. capital — money
  12. racket — a loud noise
  13. game — a kind of play
  14. wind — moving air
  15. charge — in control
  16. hand — in cards
  17. key — the most important part
  18. charge — a price
  19. wind — to turn a key
  20. wind — moving air
  21. chair — a professorship
  22. game — a match
  23. key — for a lock
  24. chair — to sit on

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