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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: kick · tube · mouse · content · march · pitch · perch · charge

  1. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  2. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  3. The tickets are free of ________________.
  4. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  5. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  6. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  7. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  8. I'll be taking the ________________.
  9. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  10. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  11. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  12. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  13. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  14. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  15. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  16. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  17. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  18. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  19. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  20. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  21. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  22. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  23. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  24. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — the fish
  2. tube — a container
  3. charge — a price
  4. mouse — the animal
  5. pitch — a sales talk
  6. pitch — a sports field
  7. pitch — completely
  8. tube — the underground
  9. kick — with a leg
  10. kick — a thrill
  11. march — music
  12. mouse — for a computer
  13. content — the amount
  14. charge — electricity
  15. march — the month
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. content — happy
  18. kick — in football
  19. charge — in control
  20. march — the month
  21. mouse — the animal
  22. tube — in a tire
  23. content — videos and posts
  24. perch — for a bird

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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