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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. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  2. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  3. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  4. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  5. You don't need to ________________ round.
  6. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  7. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  8. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  9. Have you met the new head ________________?
  10. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  11. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  12. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  13. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  14. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  15. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  16. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  17. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  18. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  19. We're almost out of ________________.
  20. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  21. The tickets are free of ________________.
  22. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  23. Did you ________________ the meat?
  24. There's no middle ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — music
  2. ground — crushed
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. season — of the year
  5. pop — to visit
  6. coach — pulled by horses
  7. charge — in control
  8. chip — to eat
  9. coach — a trainer
  10. chip — for betting
  11. capital — a city
  12. charge — electricity
  13. capital — a big letter
  14. season — in sport
  15. patient — calm and waiting
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. capital — money
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. pop — soda
  20. chip — in a computer
  21. charge — a price
  22. ground — the earth
  23. season — to add flavour
  24. ground — a position

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