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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. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  2. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  3. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  4. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  5. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  6. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  7. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  8. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  9. He was locked up in a ________________.
  10. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  11. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  12. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  13. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  14. The tickets are free of ________________.
  15. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  16. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  17. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  18. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  19. He is an ace ________________.
  20. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  21. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  22. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  23. Don't do anything ________________.
  24. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — child
  2. kick — in football
  3. kick — a thrill
  4. rash — a series
  5. kid — to tease
  6. perch — the fish
  7. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  8. rash — on the skin
  9. cell — in a prison
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. charge — electricity
  12. wake — a trail
  13. wake — before a funeral
  14. charge — a price
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. charge — in control
  17. cell — in biology
  18. wake — to stop sleeping
  19. pitcher — in baseball
  20. cell — a phone
  21. perch — for a bird
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. rash — hasty
  24. kick — with a leg

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