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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. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  2. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  3. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  4. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  5. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  6. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  7. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  8. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  9. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  10. There's no middle ________________.
  11. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  12. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  13. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  14. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  15. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  16. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  17. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  18. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  19. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  20. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  21. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  22. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  23. The tickets are free of ________________.
  24. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.

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

Answer key

  1. present — the time now
  2. staff — employees
  3. present — a gift
  4. hand — help
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. fan — to cool the air
  7. hand — in cards
  8. hand — part of the body
  9. charge — in control
  10. ground — a position
  11. straw — a straw man
  12. ground — the earth
  13. march — music
  14. march — the month
  15. march — the month
  16. charge — electricity
  17. straw — dry grass
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. straw — to clutch at straws
  20. staff — a stick
  21. ground — crushed
  22. present — there
  23. charge — a price
  24. staff — employees

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