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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
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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: season · kick · bat · wax · charge · pitcher · coach · bark

  1. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  2. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  3. He is an ace ________________.
  4. Have you met the new head ________________?
  5. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  6. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  7. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  8. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  9. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  10. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  11. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  12. Did you ________________ the meat?
  13. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  14. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  15. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  16. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  17. The tickets are free of ________________.
  18. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  19. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  20. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  21. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  22. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  23. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  24. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — electricity
  2. wax — for sculpting
  3. pitcher — in baseball
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. charge — in control
  6. season — of the year
  7. wax — in the ear
  8. wax — to grow
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. kick — a thrill
  11. bat — the animal
  12. season — to add flavour
  13. bark — of a tree
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. bark — a dog's sound
  16. bark — to shout
  17. charge — a price
  18. kick — with a leg
  19. coach — pulled by horses
  20. bat — for baseball
  21. kick — in football
  22. season — in sport
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. bat — in an idiom

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