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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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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 · saw · march · kid · bay · toast · last · clip

  1. He works in a ________________ mill.
  2. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  3. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  4. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  5. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  6. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  7. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  8. She's very handy with a ________________.
  9. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  10. The tickets are free of ________________.
  11. My mare is ________________ in color.
  12. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  13. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  14. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  15. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  16. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  17. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  18. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  19. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  20. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  21. False peace will not ________________.
  22. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  23. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  24. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. bay — a part of the sea
  3. charge — electricity
  4. clip — a video
  5. last — finally
  6. toast — a drink to someone
  7. march — music
  8. saw — the tool
  9. charge — in control
  10. charge — a price
  11. bay — a horse colour
  12. kid — child
  13. bay — to keep at bay
  14. toast — bread
  15. march — the month
  16. saw — past of 'see'
  17. kid — to tease
  18. clip — for paper
  19. clip — to cut
  20. march — the month
  21. last — to go on
  22. toast — the most admired
  23. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  24. last — final

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