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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. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  2. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  3. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  4. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  5. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  6. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  7. The tickets are free of ________________.
  8. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  9. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  10. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  11. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  12. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  13. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  14. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  15. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  16. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  17. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  18. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  19. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  20. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  21. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  22. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  23. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  24. Where can I ________________ my mobile?

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

Answer key

  1. charge — in control
  2. present — a gift
  3. bass — the instrument
  4. net — in sport
  5. club — for dancing
  6. net — for catching
  7. charge — a price
  8. spring — the season
  9. bat — the animal
  10. net — after costs
  11. spring — of water
  12. club — for golf
  13. bass — low music
  14. present — there
  15. present — the time now
  16. spring — a coil
  17. bass — the fish
  18. chair — a leader
  19. club — a group
  20. bat — in an idiom
  21. chair — a professorship
  22. bat — for baseball
  23. chair — to sit on
  24. charge — electricity

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