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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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Word bank
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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. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  3. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  4. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  5. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  6. He is an ace ________________.
  7. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  8. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  9. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  10. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  11. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  12. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  13. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  14. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  15. The tickets are free of ________________.
  16. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  17. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  18. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  19. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  20. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  21. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  22. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  23. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  24. Fill up this ________________ with water.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — electricity
  2. bass — the instrument
  3. content — the amount
  4. foot — part of the body
  5. foot — a measure
  6. pitcher — in baseball
  7. march — the month
  8. file — a document
  9. charge — in control
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. file — a tool
  12. shower — rain
  13. file — a line of people
  14. content — happy
  15. charge — a price
  16. bass — the fish
  17. shower — a meteor shower
  18. foot — the bottom
  19. march — the month
  20. march — music
  21. shower — to wash
  22. content — videos and posts
  23. bass — low music
  24. pitcher — a jug

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