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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. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  2. The tickets are free of ________________.
  3. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  4. When are we going to ________________?
  5. That was a fun ________________.
  6. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  7. Don't do anything ________________.
  8. False peace will not ________________.
  9. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  10. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  11. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  12. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  13. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  14. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  15. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  16. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  17. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  18. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  19. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  20. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  21. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  22. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  23. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  24. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — electricity
  2. charge — a price
  3. present — a gift
  4. land — to come down
  5. game — a match
  6. last — finally
  7. rash — hasty
  8. last — to go on
  9. last — final
  10. leaves — of a tree
  11. root — of a word
  12. leaves — lets stay
  13. charge — in control
  14. land — a country
  15. rash — on the skin
  16. present — the time now
  17. game — a kind of play
  18. present — there
  19. root — the cause
  20. land — ground
  21. root — of a plant
  22. leaves — to go away
  23. game — wild animals
  24. rash — a series

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