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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. The tickets are free of ________________.
  2. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  3. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  4. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  5. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  6. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  7. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  8. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  9. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  10. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  11. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  12. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  13. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  14. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  15. You don't need to ________________ round.
  16. We're almost out of ________________.
  17. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  18. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  19. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  20. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  21. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  22. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  23. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  24. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — a price
  2. cap — of ice
  3. snap — to snap out of it
  4. charge — in control
  5. clip — to cut
  6. cap — a hat
  7. march — the month
  8. charge — electricity
  9. row — a quarrel
  10. clip — for paper
  11. deal — a big deal
  12. clip — a video
  13. snap — to click
  14. deal — to handle
  15. pop — to visit
  16. pop — soda
  17. cap — a lid
  18. march — music
  19. march — the month
  20. row — to paddle
  21. pop — music
  22. snap — to speak sharply
  23. deal — an agreement
  24. row — a line

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