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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. The tickets are free of ________________.
  2. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  3. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  4. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  5. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  6. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  7. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  8. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  9. There's no middle ________________.
  10. The ball is in your ________________.
  11. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  12. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  13. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  14. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  15. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  16. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  17. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  18. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  19. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  20. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  21. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  22. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  23. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  24. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — a price
  2. wind — to turn a key
  3. wound — an injury
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. cap — of ice
  6. pitch — a sports field
  7. wind — moving air
  8. patient — calm and waiting
  9. ground — a position
  10. court — for sport
  11. charge — electricity
  12. wound — past of 'wind'
  13. court — of law
  14. pitch — a sales talk
  15. charge — in control
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. wound — an injury
  18. ground — crushed
  19. pitch — completely
  20. wind — moving air
  21. cap — a lid
  22. ground — the earth
  23. cap — a hat
  24. court — of a king

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