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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 116 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. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  2. David sat on the ________________.
  3. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  4. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  5. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  6. The tickets are free of ________________.
  7. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  8. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  9. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  10. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  11. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  12. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  13. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  16. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  17. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  18. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  19. Where did you ________________ them?
  20. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  21. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  22. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  23. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  24. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — in control
  2. swing — to play on
  3. swing — music
  4. mug — a cup
  5. rule — government
  6. charge — a price
  7. root — of a plant
  8. root — of a word
  9. clip — for paper
  10. clip — a video
  11. rule — a law
  12. charge — electricity
  13. mug — a face
  14. capital — a city
  15. drill — the tool
  16. swing — in golf
  17. clip — to cut
  18. rule — to rule out
  19. mug — to rob
  20. capital — a big letter
  21. drill — army training
  22. root — the cause
  23. drill — a practice
  24. capital — money

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