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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: charge · bark · stand · deal · bulb · cold · pitcher · rush

  1. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  2. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  3. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  4. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  5. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  6. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  7. He is an ace ________________.
  8. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  9. The light ________________ burned out.
  10. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  11. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  12. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  13. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  14. That must've been a ________________.
  15. The tickets are free of ________________.
  16. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  17. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  18. The water is too ________________.
  19. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  20. I can't ________________ this cold.
  21. I've got to change the light ________________.
  22. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  23. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  24. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — electricity
  2. cold — the Cold War
  3. stand — on your feet
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. bark — a dog's sound
  7. pitcher — in baseball
  8. bark — of a tree
  9. bulb — for light
  10. bulb — of a plant
  11. cold — an illness
  12. rush — hurry
  13. rush — to hurry
  14. rush — a thrill
  15. charge — a price
  16. bark — to shout
  17. deal — a big deal
  18. cold — not warm
  19. deal — an agreement
  20. stand — to bear
  21. bulb — for light
  22. stand — for spectators
  23. deal — to handle
  24. charge — in control

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