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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. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  2. The tickets are free of ________________.
  3. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  4. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  5. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  6. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  7. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  8. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  9. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  10. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  11. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  12. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  13. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  14. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  15. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  16. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  17. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  18. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  19. He was locked up in a ________________.
  20. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  21. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  22. My father caught me by the ________________.
  23. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  24. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — a straw man
  2. charge — a price
  3. charge — electricity
  4. arm — a part of something
  5. bore — gave birth
  6. arm — part of the body
  7. cell — a phone
  8. pit — a fruit stone
  9. pit — in a race
  10. straw — dry grass
  11. wake — a trail
  12. bore — to tire
  13. straw — to clutch at straws
  14. pit — a hole
  15. charge — in control
  16. bore — to drill
  17. object — a thing
  18. object — an aim
  19. cell — in a prison
  20. wake — to stop sleeping
  21. object — to protest
  22. arm — part of the body
  23. wake — before a funeral
  24. cell — in biology

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