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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 116 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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: tear · present · game · bat · chair · row · mug · charge

  1. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  2. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  3. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  4. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  5. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  6. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  7. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  8. Where did you ________________ them?
  9. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  10. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  11. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  12. That was a fun ________________.
  13. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  14. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  15. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  16. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  17. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  18. The tickets are free of ________________.
  19. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  20. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  21. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  22. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  23. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  24. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a quarrel
  2. tear — to rip
  3. game — a kind of play
  4. mug — a face
  5. present — there
  6. row — a line
  7. chair — a professorship
  8. mug — to rob
  9. bat — the animal
  10. charge — electricity
  11. present — a gift
  12. game — a match
  13. row — to paddle
  14. charge — in control
  15. tear — from crying
  16. chair — to sit on
  17. bat — in an idiom
  18. charge — a price
  19. chair — a leader
  20. bat — for baseball
  21. mug — a cup
  22. tear — from crying
  23. present — the time now
  24. game — wild animals

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