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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: scale · swing · clip · coach · march · cell · ball · charge

  1. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  2. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  3. David sat on the ________________.
  4. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  5. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  8. The King held a masked ________________.
  9. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  10. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  11. Have you met the new head ________________?
  12. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  13. He was locked up in a ________________.
  14. The tickets are free of ________________.
  15. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  16. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  17. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  18. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  19. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  20. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  21. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  22. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  23. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  24. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.

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

Answer key

  1. scale — for weighing
  2. march — the month
  3. swing — to play on
  4. swing — music
  5. cell — in biology
  6. clip — for paper
  7. ball — a round shape
  8. ball — a dance
  9. march — the month
  10. clip — a video
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. coach — pulled by horses
  13. cell — in a prison
  14. charge — a price
  15. swing — in golf
  16. scale — in music
  17. charge — in control
  18. scale — size or range
  19. coach — a trainer
  20. ball — a great time
  21. cell — a phone
  22. charge — electricity
  23. march — music
  24. clip — to cut

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