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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. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  2. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  3. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  4. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  5. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  6. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  7. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  8. False peace will not ________________.
  9. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  10. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  11. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  12. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  13. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  14. The ________________ market has crashed.
  15. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  16. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  17. He is an ace ________________.
  18. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  19. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  20. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  21. The tickets are free of ________________.
  22. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  23. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  24. The ________________ took off on time.

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

Answer key

  1. present — a gift
  2. charge — in control
  3. charge — electricity
  4. rule — a law
  5. stock — goods
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. rule — government
  8. last — to go on
  9. last — final
  10. wound — an injury
  11. wound — an injury
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. rule — to rule out
  14. stock — shares
  15. stock — a soup base
  16. last — finally
  17. pitcher — in baseball
  18. present — there
  19. plane — in geometry
  20. wound — past of 'wind'
  21. charge — a price
  22. plane — a tool
  23. present — the time now
  24. plane — an aircraft

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