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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: saw · charge · court · chest · chip · march · rock · kid

  1. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  2. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  3. He works in a ________________ mill.
  4. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  5. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  6. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  7. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  8. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  9. The ball is in your ________________.
  10. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  11. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  12. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  13. The tickets are free of ________________.
  14. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  15. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  16. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  17. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  18. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  19. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  20. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  21. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  22. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  23. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  24. She's very handy with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of a king
  2. chip — for betting
  3. saw — the tool
  4. chest — of your body
  5. march — music
  6. kid — to tease
  7. rock — a stone
  8. kid — child
  9. court — for sport
  10. charge — electricity
  11. court — of law
  12. chest — a box
  13. charge — a price
  14. chip — to eat
  15. charge — in control
  16. chest — of your body
  17. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  18. march — the month
  19. chip — in a computer
  20. saw — past of 'see'
  21. rock — to move gently
  22. rock — music
  23. march — the month
  24. saw — the tool

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