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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. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  2. The tickets are free of ________________.
  3. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  4. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  5. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  6. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  7. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  8. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  9. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  10. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  11. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  12. He is an ace ________________.
  13. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  14. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  15. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  16. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  17. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  18. That must've been a ________________.
  19. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  20. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  21. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  22. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  23. I'll be taking the ________________.
  24. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. charge — a price
  3. mine — belonging to me
  4. tube — a container
  5. deal — an agreement
  6. clip — a video
  7. deal — to handle
  8. rush — to hurry
  9. branch — a division
  10. deal — a big deal
  11. charge — in control
  12. pitcher — in baseball
  13. branch — of a tree
  14. clip — for paper
  15. rush — hurry
  16. tube — in a tire
  17. clip — to cut
  18. rush — a thrill
  19. charge — electricity
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. mine — an explosive
  22. mine — for digging
  23. tube — the underground
  24. branch — of a bank

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