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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: kid · game · arm · perch · date · bat · charge · staff

  1. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  2. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  3. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  4. That was a fun ________________.
  5. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  6. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  7. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  8. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  9. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  10. The tickets are free of ________________.
  11. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  12. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  13. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  14. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  15. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  16. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  17. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  18. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  19. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  20. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  21. My father caught me by the ________________.
  22. Have you settled on a ________________?
  23. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  24. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  3. kid — child
  4. game — a match
  5. game — a kind of play
  6. bat — for baseball
  7. kid — to tease
  8. date — on the calendar
  9. charge — electricity
  10. charge — a price
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. game — wild animals
  13. staff — employees
  14. bat — the animal
  15. staff — a stick
  16. arm — part of the body
  17. perch — the fish
  18. staff — employees
  19. date — the fruit
  20. bat — in an idiom
  21. arm — part of the body
  22. date — on the calendar
  23. charge — in control
  24. arm — a part of something

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