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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: bound · calf · bat · cold · press · charge · bark · pitcher

  1. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  2. The tickets are free of ________________.
  3. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  4. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  5. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  6. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  7. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  8. Did you ________________ the button?
  9. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  10. He is an ace ________________.
  11. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  12. That was ________________ to happen.
  13. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  16. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  17. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  18. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  19. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  20. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  21. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  22. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  23. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  24. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. charge — a price
  3. bound — obliged
  4. bark — to shout
  5. calf — of the leg
  6. bark — a dog's sound
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. press — to push
  9. calf — a young animal
  10. pitcher — in baseball
  11. bat — in an idiom
  12. bound — certain
  13. press — a publisher
  14. cold — not warm
  15. calf — a young animal
  16. bark — of a tree
  17. bat — the animal
  18. bat — for baseball
  19. press — newspapers
  20. cold — the Cold War
  21. cold — an illness
  22. charge — electricity
  23. charge — in control
  24. bound — tied together

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