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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. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  2. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  3. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  4. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  5. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  6. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  7. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  8. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  9. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  10. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  11. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  12. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  13. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  14. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  15. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  16. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  17. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  18. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  19. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  20. The tickets are free of ________________.
  21. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  22. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  23. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  24. I got dealt a bad ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — electricity
  2. charge — in control
  3. spring — the season
  4. bat — the animal
  5. chip — to eat
  6. bat — in an idiom
  7. calf — a young animal
  8. chip — for betting
  9. chair — a professorship
  10. hand — help
  11. bat — for baseball
  12. bark — to shout
  13. spring — of water
  14. bark — a dog's sound
  15. chair — to sit on
  16. calf — of the leg
  17. calf — a young animal
  18. spring — a coil
  19. chair — a leader
  20. charge — a price
  21. chip — in a computer
  22. bark — of a tree
  23. hand — part of the body
  24. hand — in cards

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