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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. The tickets are free of ________________.
  2. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  3. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  4. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  5. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  6. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  7. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  8. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  9. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  10. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  11. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  12. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  13. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  14. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  15. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  16. The water is too ________________.
  17. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  18. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  19. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  20. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  21. I'll be taking the ________________.
  22. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  23. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  24. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — a price
  2. stick — to attach or keep to
  3. cold — an illness
  4. lean — to bend
  5. stem — a stem cell
  6. lean — thin
  7. cold — the Cold War
  8. tube — a container
  9. bat — for baseball
  10. stem — of a plant
  11. capital — money
  12. lean — to rest against
  13. stick — a piece of wood
  14. charge — electricity
  15. stick — a piece of wood
  16. cold — not warm
  17. bat — the animal
  18. capital — a big letter
  19. stem — to come from
  20. bat — in an idiom
  21. tube — the underground
  22. tube — in a tire
  23. capital — a city
  24. charge — in control

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