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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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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: root · club · charge · press · file · deal

  1. The tickets are free of ________________.
  2. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  3. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  4. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  5. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  6. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  7. Did you ________________ the button?
  8. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  9. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  10. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  11. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  12. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  13. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  14. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  15. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  16. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  17. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  18. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — a price
  2. root — of a plant
  3. club — for golf
  4. deal — to handle
  5. charge — electricity
  6. deal — an agreement
  7. press — to push
  8. file — a tool
  9. deal — a big deal
  10. root — of a word
  11. club — for dancing
  12. charge — in control
  13. club — a group
  14. press — a publisher
  15. press — newspapers
  16. file — a document
  17. file — a line of people
  18. root — the cause

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