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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. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  2. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  3. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  4. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  5. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  6. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  7. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  8. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  9. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  10. The tickets are free of ________________.
  11. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  12. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  13. That was a fun ________________.
  14. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  15. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  16. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  17. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  18. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  19. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  20. When are we going to ________________?
  21. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  22. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  23. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  24. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?

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

Answer key

  1. fan — to cool the air
  2. present — there
  3. land — a country
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. game — wild animals
  6. club — for golf
  7. land — ground
  8. club — for dancing
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. charge — a price
  11. charge — electricity
  12. clip — for paper
  13. game — a match
  14. perch — for a bird
  15. clip — to cut
  16. present — the time now
  17. game — a kind of play
  18. club — a group
  19. perch — the fish
  20. land — to come down
  21. clip — a video
  22. charge — in control
  23. fan — a supporter
  24. present — a gift

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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