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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. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  2. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  3. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  4. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  5. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  6. The tickets are free of ________________.
  7. When are we going to ________________?
  8. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  9. The water is too ________________.
  10. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  11. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  12. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  13. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  14. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  15. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  16. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  17. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  18. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  19. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  20. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  21. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  22. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  23. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  24. There's a computer ________________ on the table.

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

Answer key

  1. mouse — the animal
  2. chair — to sit on
  3. board — a flat piece
  4. fall — to drop
  5. board — to get on
  6. charge — a price
  7. land — to come down
  8. cold — an illness
  9. cold — not warm
  10. mouse — the animal
  11. mouse — for a computer
  12. cold — the Cold War
  13. charge — electricity
  14. chair — a professorship
  15. chip — for betting
  16. board — a committee
  17. chair — a leader
  18. fall — the season
  19. fall — to drop
  20. chip — to eat
  21. land — a country
  22. charge — in control
  23. land — ground
  24. chip — in a computer

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