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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: kid · charge · kick · game · pitch · swing · cabinet · row

  1. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  2. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  3. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  4. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  5. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  6. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  7. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  8. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  9. That was a fun ________________.
  10. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  11. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  12. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  13. The tickets are free of ________________.
  14. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  15. What do you think of the new ________________?
  16. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  17. David sat on the ________________.
  18. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  19. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  20. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  21. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  22. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  23. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  24. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — in golf
  2. pitch — a sports field
  3. row — a quarrel
  4. kick — in football
  5. charge — electricity
  6. game — a kind of play
  7. kick — with a leg
  8. pitch — a sales talk
  9. game — a match
  10. kick — a thrill
  11. cabinet — ministers
  12. swing — music
  13. charge — a price
  14. cabinet — a cupboard
  15. cabinet — ministers
  16. charge — in control
  17. swing — to play on
  18. row — a line
  19. kid — child
  20. kid — to tease
  21. pitch — completely
  22. row — to paddle
  23. game — wild animals
  24. kid — young goat (kid gloves)

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