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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. I can't ________________ this cold.
  2. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  3. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  4. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  5. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  6. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  7. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  8. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  9. The tickets are free of ________________.
  10. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  11. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  12. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  13. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  14. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  15. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  16. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  17. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  18. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  19. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  20. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  21. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  22. That was a fun ________________.
  23. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  24. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stand — to bear
  2. rock — a stone
  3. rock — music
  4. rock — to move gently
  5. game — a kind of play
  6. stand — for spectators
  7. charge — in control
  8. stand — on your feet
  9. charge — a price
  10. march — the month
  11. prune — to trim
  12. bat — in an idiom
  13. bat — for baseball
  14. prune — to trim
  15. march — the month
  16. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  17. bat — the animal
  18. game — wild animals
  19. march — music
  20. charge — electricity
  21. kid — to tease
  22. game — a match
  23. prune — the fruit
  24. kid — child

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