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

Word bank: march · chest · charge · club · tear · bulb

  1. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  2. The light ________________ burned out.
  3. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  4. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  5. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  6. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  7. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  8. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  9. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  10. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  11. I've got to change the light ________________.
  12. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  13. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  14. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  15. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  16. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  17. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  18. The tickets are free of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for dancing
  2. bulb — for light
  3. march — the month
  4. tear — from crying
  5. chest — a box
  6. tear — from crying
  7. chest — of your body
  8. club — a group
  9. bulb — of a plant
  10. chest — of your body
  11. bulb — for light
  12. charge — in control
  13. march — music
  14. march — the month
  15. tear — to rip
  16. club — for golf
  17. charge — electricity
  18. charge — a price

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