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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. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  2. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  3. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  4. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  5. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  6. That was ________________ to happen.
  7. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  8. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  9. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  10. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  11. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  12. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  13. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  14. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  15. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  16. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  17. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  18. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  19. The tickets are free of ________________.
  20. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  21. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  22. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  23. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  24. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — thin
  2. charge — electricity
  3. charge — in control
  4. bat — the animal
  5. scale — in music
  6. bound — certain
  7. net — in sport
  8. lean — to bend
  9. firm — a company
  10. firm — steady
  11. firm — decided
  12. net — for catching
  13. lean — to rest against
  14. scale — for weighing
  15. bound — tied together
  16. bat — for baseball
  17. scale — size or range
  18. march — the month
  19. charge — a price
  20. net — after costs
  21. bound — obliged
  22. march — music
  23. march — the month
  24. bat — in an idiom

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