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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 120 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. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  2. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  3. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  4. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  5. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  6. The tickets are free of ________________.
  7. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  8. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  9. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  10. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  11. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  12. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  13. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  14. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  15. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  16. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  17. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  18. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  19. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  20. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  21. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  22. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  23. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  24. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — a break
  2. charge — in control
  3. rest — what's left
  4. squash — the sport
  5. straw — a straw man
  6. charge — a price
  7. march — the month
  8. wake — before a funeral
  9. squash — to crush
  10. net — after costs
  11. squash — the vegetable
  12. straw — to clutch at straws
  13. cap — a lid
  14. march — music
  15. wake — a trail
  16. cap — a hat
  17. charge — electricity
  18. net — in sport
  19. march — the month
  20. cap — of ice
  21. net — for catching
  22. rest — what's left
  23. straw — dry grass
  24. wake — to stop sleeping

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