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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. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  2. The tickets are free of ________________.
  3. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  4. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  5. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  6. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  7. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  8. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  9. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  10. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  11. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  12. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  13. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  14. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  15. The ball is in your ________________.
  16. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  17. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  18. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  19. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  20. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  21. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  22. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  23. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  24. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a song
  2. charge — a price
  3. face — to confront
  4. degree — from a university
  5. court — of law
  6. row — a line
  7. degree — temperature
  8. race — the arms race
  9. track — to keep track
  10. face — part of the head
  11. track — a path
  12. race — a contest
  13. charge — electricity
  14. staff — employees
  15. court — for sport
  16. staff — employees
  17. row — to paddle
  18. row — a quarrel
  19. degree — an amount
  20. face — to point toward
  21. court — of a king
  22. charge — in control
  23. staff — a stick
  24. race — humankind

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