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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 · clip · snap · saw · march · chest · suit · rock

  1. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  2. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  3. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  4. He works in a ________________ mill.
  5. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  6. The tickets are free of ________________.
  7. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  8. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  9. When will it ________________ you to start?
  10. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  11. She's very handy with a ________________.
  12. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  13. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  14. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  15. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  16. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  17. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  18. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  19. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  20. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  21. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  22. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  23. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  24. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. clip — to cut
  3. chest — of your body
  4. saw — the tool
  5. snap — to click
  6. charge — a price
  7. rock — music
  8. saw — past of 'see'
  9. suit — to fit
  10. march — the month
  11. saw — the tool
  12. charge — in control
  13. charge — electricity
  14. rock — to move gently
  15. snap — to speak sharply
  16. clip — a video
  17. chest — of your body
  18. march — the month
  19. chest — a box
  20. rock — a stone
  21. suit — clothes
  22. march — music
  23. snap — to snap out of it
  24. suit — in cards

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