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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 116 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: cold · row · season · kick · pound · charge · chair · cap

  1. Did you ________________ the meat?
  2. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  3. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  4. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  5. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  6. The tickets are free of ________________.
  7. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  8. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  9. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  10. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  11. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  12. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  13. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  16. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  17. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  18. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  19. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  20. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  21. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  22. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  23. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  24. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.

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

Answer key

  1. season — to add flavour
  2. charge — in control
  3. chair — a professorship
  4. chair — a leader
  5. pound — for dogs
  6. charge — a price
  7. row — a line
  8. kick — a thrill
  9. pound — a weight
  10. cap — of ice
  11. pound — to hit hard
  12. row — a quarrel
  13. season — of the year
  14. cold — not warm
  15. cold — the Cold War
  16. kick — in football
  17. cap — a lid
  18. kick — with a leg
  19. chair — to sit on
  20. row — to paddle
  21. cold — an illness
  22. charge — electricity
  23. season — in sport
  24. cap — a hat

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