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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's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  3. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  4. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  5. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  6. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  7. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  8. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  9. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  10. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  11. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  12. He works in a ________________ mill.
  13. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  14. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  15. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  16. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  17. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  18. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  19. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  20. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  21. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  22. She's very handy with a ________________.
  23. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  24. Can you turn the ________________ on?

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

Answer key

  1. charge — a price
  2. band — a music group
  3. bat — for baseball
  4. dip — a sauce
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. saw — past of 'see'
  7. kid — child
  8. charge — electricity
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. band — a ring
  11. bat — the animal
  12. saw — the tool
  13. dip — to dunk
  14. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  15. charge — in control
  16. dip — to sink
  17. kid — to tease
  18. mouse — the animal
  19. mouse — the animal
  20. bat — in an idiom
  21. band — a rubber band
  22. saw — the tool
  23. mouse — for a computer
  24. fan — to cool the air

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