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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: pitcher · charge · chest · march · rush · wake · jam · land

  1. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  2. He is an ace ________________.
  3. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  4. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  5. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  6. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  7. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  8. That must've been a ________________.
  9. When are we going to ________________?
  10. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  11. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  12. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  13. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  14. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  15. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  16. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  17. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  18. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  19. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  20. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  21. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  22. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  23. The tickets are free of ________________.
  24. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. pitcher — in baseball
  3. march — music
  4. chest — of your body
  5. march — the month
  6. charge — in control
  7. land — ground
  8. rush — a thrill
  9. land — to come down
  10. jam — in traffic
  11. rush — to hurry
  12. chest — a box
  13. wake — before a funeral
  14. chest — of your body
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. jam — a tight spot
  17. march — the month
  18. rush — hurry
  19. land — a country
  20. jam — to spread on bread
  21. charge — electricity
  22. wake — to stop sleeping
  23. charge — a price
  24. wake — a trail

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