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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
468
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: march · arm · field · scale · charge · chest · mark · squash

  1. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  2. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  3. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  4. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  5. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  6. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  7. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  8. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  9. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  10. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  11. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  12. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  13. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  14. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  15. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  16. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  17. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  18. My father caught me by the ________________.
  19. The tickets are free of ________________.
  20. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  21. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  22. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  23. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  24. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — electricity
  2. arm — a part of something
  3. arm — part of the body
  4. mark — a grade
  5. field — for sport
  6. mark — a trace
  7. chest — a box
  8. squash — the vegetable
  9. scale — size or range
  10. field — a subject
  11. squash — the sport
  12. mark — to pay attention
  13. chest — of your body
  14. march — the month
  15. march — the month
  16. march — music
  17. squash — to crush
  18. arm — part of the body
  19. charge — a price
  20. charge — in control
  21. scale — in music
  22. chest — of your body
  23. field — farmland
  24. scale — for weighing

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