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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. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  3. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  4. The tickets are free of ________________.
  5. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  6. When will it ________________ you to start?
  7. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  8. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  9. The ball is in your ________________.
  10. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  11. That was a fun ________________.
  12. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  13. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  14. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  15. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  16. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  17. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  18. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  19. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  20. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  21. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  22. I'll be taking the ________________.
  23. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  24. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — electricity
  2. cold — an illness
  3. tube — a container
  4. charge — a price
  5. tube — in a tire
  6. suit — to fit
  7. chair — to sit on
  8. game — wild animals
  9. court — for sport
  10. game — a kind of play
  11. game — a match
  12. cold — the Cold War
  13. charge — in control
  14. branch — of a tree
  15. suit — in cards
  16. chair — a leader
  17. court — of a king
  18. branch — a division
  19. court — of law
  20. chair — a professorship
  21. suit — clothes
  22. tube — the underground
  23. branch — of a bank
  24. cold — not warm

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