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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. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  3. The tickets are free of ________________.
  4. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  5. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  6. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  7. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  8. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  9. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  10. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  11. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  12. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  13. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  14. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  15. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  16. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  17. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  18. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  19. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  20. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  21. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  22. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  23. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  24. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — child
  2. charge — in control
  3. charge — a price
  4. chair — a professorship
  5. jam — a tight spot
  6. jam — in traffic
  7. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  8. band — a rubber band
  9. band — a ring
  10. charge — electricity
  11. straw — a straw man
  12. club — a group
  13. chair — to sit on
  14. band — a music group
  15. straw — dry grass
  16. chair — a leader
  17. jam — to spread on bread
  18. club — for dancing
  19. club — for golf
  20. row — a quarrel
  21. straw — to clutch at straws
  22. row — a line
  23. row — to paddle
  24. kid — to tease

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