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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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: fall · bat · prune · cap · charge · land · racket · last

  1. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  2. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  3. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  4. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  5. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  6. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  7. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  8. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  9. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  10. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  11. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  12. When are we going to ________________?
  13. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  14. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  15. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  16. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  17. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  18. The tickets are free of ________________.
  19. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  20. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  21. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  22. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  23. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  24. False peace will not ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — in control
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. land — ground
  4. racket — for tennis
  5. bat — in an idiom
  6. racket — a loud noise
  7. prune — the fruit
  8. fall — to drop
  9. cap — of ice
  10. prune — to trim
  11. bat — for baseball
  12. land — to come down
  13. land — a country
  14. last — final
  15. cap — a lid
  16. fall — to drop
  17. prune — to trim
  18. charge — a price
  19. charge — electricity
  20. bat — the animal
  21. fall — the season
  22. last — finally
  23. cap — a hat
  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