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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. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  2. What do you think of the new ________________?
  3. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  4. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  5. The tickets are free of ________________.
  6. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  7. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  8. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  9. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  10. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  11. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  12. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  13. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  14. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  15. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  16. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  17. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  18. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  19. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  20. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  21. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  22. I'll be taking the ________________.
  23. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  24. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — electricity
  2. cabinet — ministers
  3. bat — the animal
  4. bat — in an idiom
  5. charge — a price
  6. charge — in control
  7. cabinet — a cupboard
  8. cabinet — ministers
  9. bat — for baseball
  10. tube — in a tire
  11. straw — a straw man
  12. net — for catching
  13. lie — to recline
  14. net — in sport
  15. net — after costs
  16. tube — a container
  17. straw — to clutch at straws
  18. straw — dry grass
  19. bank — for money
  20. lie — an untruth
  21. bank — of a river
  22. tube — the underground
  23. lie — an untruth
  24. bank — for 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