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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. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  2. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  3. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  4. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  5. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  6. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  7. He was locked up in a ________________.
  8. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  9. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  10. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  11. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  12. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  13. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  14. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  15. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  16. Have you found your soul ________________?
  17. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  18. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  19. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  20. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  21. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  22. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  23. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  24. The tickets are free of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a path
  2. charge — in control
  3. track — to keep track
  4. mate — a friend
  5. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  6. board — a committee
  7. cell — in a prison
  8. bat — in an idiom
  9. board — to get on
  10. bat — for baseball
  11. mate — to breed
  12. bat — the animal
  13. cell — in biology
  14. track — a song
  15. march — the month
  16. mate — a partner
  17. march — the month
  18. kid — to tease
  19. kid — child
  20. march — music
  21. charge — electricity
  22. cell — a phone
  23. board — a flat piece
  24. charge — a price

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