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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. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  2. The tickets are free of ________________.
  3. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  4. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  5. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  6. The light ________________ burned out.
  7. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  8. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  9. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  10. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  11. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  12. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  13. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  14. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  15. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  16. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  17. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  18. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  19. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  20. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  21. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  22. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  23. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  24. I've got to change the light ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — electricity
  2. charge — a price
  3. present — a gift
  4. net — for catching
  5. prune — to trim
  6. bulb — for light
  7. degree — an amount
  8. prune — to trim
  9. band — a rubber band
  10. degree — from a university
  11. band — a ring
  12. bulb — of a plant
  13. band — a music group
  14. net — after costs
  15. prune — the fruit
  16. current — of water
  17. current — happening now
  18. current — electric
  19. degree — temperature
  20. net — in sport
  21. charge — in control
  22. present — the time now
  23. present — there
  24. bulb — for light

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