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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. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  2. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  3. It's one o'clock ________________.
  4. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  5. The tickets are free of ________________.
  6. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  7. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  8. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  9. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  10. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  11. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  12. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  13. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  14. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  15. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  16. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  17. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  18. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  19. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  20. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  21. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  22. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  23. The ________________ went through the wall.
  24. False peace will not ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — electricity
  2. file — a tool
  3. sharp — exactly
  4. vault — in gymnastics
  5. charge — a price
  6. charge — in control
  7. file — a line of people
  8. shower — to wash
  9. shower — a meteor shower
  10. nail — for a hammer
  11. board — to get on
  12. sharp — with an edge
  13. file — a document
  14. vault — an arched ceiling
  15. last — final
  16. last — finally
  17. nail — on a finger
  18. board — a committee
  19. sharp — clever
  20. shower — rain
  21. vault — a safe
  22. board — a flat piece
  23. nail — for a hammer
  24. last — to go on

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