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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.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
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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 water is too ________________.
  2. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  3. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  4. The tickets are free of ________________.
  5. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  6. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  7. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  8. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  9. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  10. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  11. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  12. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  13. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  14. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  15. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  16. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  17. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  18. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  19. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  20. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  21. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  22. Have you found your soul ________________?
  23. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  24. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. charge — electricity
  3. net — for catching
  4. charge — a price
  5. wave — a sudden rise
  6. kid — to tease
  7. pound — to hit hard
  8. net — after costs
  9. pound — a weight
  10. mine — for digging
  11. mate — to breed
  12. kid — child
  13. pound — for dogs
  14. wave — of the sea
  15. charge — in control
  16. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  17. mate — a friend
  18. cold — an illness
  19. mine — an explosive
  20. net — in sport
  21. mine — belonging to me
  22. mate — a partner
  23. cold — the Cold War
  24. wave — with your hand

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