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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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: coach · pound · charge · drill · wind · chip

  1. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  2. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  3. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  4. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  5. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  6. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  7. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  8. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  9. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  10. The tickets are free of ________________.
  11. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  12. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  13. Have you met the new head ________________?
  14. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  15. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  16. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  17. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  18. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — electricity
  2. wind — moving air
  3. wind — moving air
  4. chip — for betting
  5. chip — in a computer
  6. pound — a weight
  7. pound — for dogs
  8. charge — in control
  9. drill — a practice
  10. charge — a price
  11. wind — to turn a key
  12. drill — the tool
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. coach — pulled by horses
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. pound — to hit hard
  17. chip — to eat
  18. drill — army training

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