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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. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  3. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  4. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  5. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  6. The King held a masked ________________.
  7. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  8. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  9. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  10. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  11. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  12. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  13. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  14. Did you ________________ the meat?
  15. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  16. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  17. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  18. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  19. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  20. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  21. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  22. I'll be taking the ________________.
  23. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  24. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — a price
  2. tube — in a tire
  3. field — a subject
  4. field — for sport
  5. charge — in control
  6. ball — a dance
  7. rock — to move gently
  8. season — of the year
  9. toast — bread
  10. field — farmland
  11. ball — a great time
  12. rock — music
  13. chest — of your body
  14. season — to add flavour
  15. rock — a stone
  16. season — in sport
  17. ball — a round shape
  18. toast — the most admired
  19. chest — a box
  20. chest — of your body
  21. charge — electricity
  22. tube — the underground
  23. toast — a drink to someone
  24. tube — a container

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