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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. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  2. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  3. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  4. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  5. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  6. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  7. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  8. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  9. He works in a ________________ mill.
  10. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  11. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  12. The tickets are free of ________________.
  13. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  14. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  15. She's very handy with a ________________.
  16. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  17. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  18. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  19. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  20. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  21. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  22. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  23. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  24. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — in control
  2. wind — moving air
  3. stem — to come from
  4. wind — moving air
  5. mine — an explosive
  6. bat — the animal
  7. pass — to spend time
  8. wind — to turn a key
  9. saw — the tool
  10. band — a music group
  11. mine — for digging
  12. charge — a price
  13. band — a ring
  14. pass — a permit
  15. saw — the tool
  16. stem — of a plant
  17. stem — a stem cell
  18. band — a rubber band
  19. charge — electricity
  20. bat — in an idiom
  21. mine — belonging to me
  22. saw — past of 'see'
  23. bat — for baseball
  24. pass — to succeed

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