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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 124 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. The tickets are free of ________________.
  2. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  5. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  6. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  7. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  8. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  9. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  10. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  11. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  12. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  13. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  14. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  15. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  16. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  17. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  18. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  19. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  20. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  21. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  22. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  23. The King held a masked ________________.
  24. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — a price
  2. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  3. field — farmland
  4. field — a subject
  5. jam — in traffic
  6. club — for golf
  7. ball — a round shape
  8. charge — electricity
  9. ball — a great time
  10. jam — to spread on bread
  11. kid — to tease
  12. charge — in control
  13. row — to paddle
  14. jam — a tight spot
  15. field — for sport
  16. straw — dry grass
  17. club — a group
  18. row — a quarrel
  19. kid — child
  20. straw — to clutch at straws
  21. club — for dancing
  22. straw — a straw man
  23. ball — a dance
  24. row — a line

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