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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. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  2. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  3. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  4. He was locked up in a ________________.
  5. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  6. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  7. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  8. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  9. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  10. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  11. The tickets are free of ________________.
  12. Have you met the new head ________________?
  13. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  14. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  15. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  16. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  17. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  18. There's no middle ________________.
  19. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  20. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  21. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  22. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  23. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  24. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — pulled by horses
  2. ground — crushed
  3. fork — in a road
  4. cell — in a prison
  5. cell — in biology
  6. kick — a thrill
  7. ground — the earth
  8. kick — in football
  9. fork — a garden tool
  10. cell — a phone
  11. charge — a price
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. shower — to wash
  14. tear — from crying
  15. shower — rain
  16. charge — electricity
  17. fork — to eat with
  18. ground — a position
  19. tear — from crying
  20. kick — with a leg
  21. tear — to rip
  22. shower — a meteor shower
  23. coach — a trainer
  24. charge — in control

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