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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 116 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. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  2. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  3. How do you ________________ your surname?
  4. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  5. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  6. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  7. He was locked up in a ________________.
  8. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  9. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  10. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  11. The tickets are free of ________________.
  12. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  13. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  14. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  15. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  16. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  17. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  18. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  19. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  20. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  21. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  22. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  23. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  24. False peace will not ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — a phone
  2. last — finally
  3. spell — letters
  4. scale — for weighing
  5. charge — electricity
  6. cell — in biology
  7. cell — in a prison
  8. pound — for dogs
  9. last — final
  10. bat — in an idiom
  11. charge — a price
  12. charge — in control
  13. track — to keep track
  14. spell — magic
  15. bat — the animal
  16. pound — to hit hard
  17. track — a song
  18. bat — for baseball
  19. scale — size or range
  20. spell — a short time
  21. track — a path
  22. pound — a weight
  23. scale — in music
  24. last — to go on

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