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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. The tickets are free of ________________.
  2. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  3. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  4. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  5. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  6. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  7. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  8. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  9. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  10. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  11. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  12. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  13. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  14. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  15. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  16. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  17. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  18. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  19. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  20. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  21. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  22. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  23. Have you found your soul ________________?
  24. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — a price
  2. mate — a friend
  3. field — a subject
  4. mate — to breed
  5. cap — of ice
  6. field — farmland
  7. prune — to trim
  8. chip — to eat
  9. squash — the vegetable
  10. prune — the fruit
  11. stem — to come from
  12. squash — to crush
  13. squash — the sport
  14. stem — a stem cell
  15. prune — to trim
  16. charge — electricity
  17. cap — a lid
  18. charge — in control
  19. cap — a hat
  20. field — for sport
  21. stem — of a plant
  22. chip — in a computer
  23. mate — a partner
  24. chip — for betting

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