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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 124 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. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  4. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  5. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  6. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  7. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  8. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  9. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  10. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  11. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  12. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  13. The tickets are free of ________________.
  14. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  15. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  16. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  17. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  18. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  19. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  20. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  21. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  22. The ball is in your ________________.
  23. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  24. You can't go backstage without a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — electricity
  2. degree — from a university
  3. chest — a box
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. pass — to succeed
  6. staff — a stick
  7. staff — employees
  8. march — music
  9. march — the month
  10. court — of a king
  11. charge — in control
  12. degree — temperature
  13. charge — a price
  14. court — of law
  15. perch — the fish
  16. staff — employees
  17. pass — to spend time
  18. degree — an amount
  19. march — the month
  20. chest — of your body
  21. perch — for a bird
  22. court — for sport
  23. chest — of your body
  24. pass — a permit

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