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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 120 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.

Words on the sheet
468
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 · coach · degree · swing · bass · rule · pound · spring

  1. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  2. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  3. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  4. The tickets are free of ________________.
  5. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  6. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  7. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  8. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  9. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  10. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  11. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  12. Have you met the new head ________________?
  13. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  14. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  15. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  16. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  17. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  18. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  19. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  20. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  21. David sat on the ________________.
  22. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  23. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  24. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — government
  2. bass — low music
  3. pound — a weight
  4. charge — a price
  5. bass — the fish
  6. degree — from a university
  7. rule — to rule out
  8. coach — a trainer
  9. spring — of water
  10. pound — to hit hard
  11. spring — a coil
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. rule — a law
  14. swing — in golf
  15. swing — music
  16. charge — in control
  17. bass — the instrument
  18. pound — for dogs
  19. degree — an amount
  20. charge — electricity
  21. swing — to play on
  22. spring — the season
  23. coach — pulled by horses
  24. degree — temperature

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