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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. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  2. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  3. He was locked up in a ________________.
  4. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  5. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  6. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  7. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  8. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  9. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  10. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  11. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  12. I can't ________________ this cold.
  13. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  14. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  15. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  16. When are we going to ________________?
  17. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  18. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  19. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  20. The tickets are free of ________________.
  21. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  22. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  23. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  24. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — electricity
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. cell — in a prison
  4. wound — past of 'wind'
  5. wound — an injury
  6. stand — for spectators
  7. land — a country
  8. wound — an injury
  9. land — ground
  10. present — a gift
  11. stand — on your feet
  12. stand — to bear
  13. charge — in control
  14. patient — calm and waiting
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. land — to come down
  17. present — there
  18. cell — a phone
  19. cell — in biology
  20. charge — a price
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. present — the time now
  24. perch — the fish

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