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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.

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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: club · pound · face · cold · present · branch · charge · rock

  1. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  2. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  3. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  4. The tickets are free of ________________.
  5. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  6. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  7. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  8. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  9. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  10. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  11. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  12. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  13. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  14. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  15. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  16. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  17. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  18. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  19. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  20. The water is too ________________.
  21. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  22. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  23. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  24. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — a division
  2. present — the time now
  3. present — there
  4. charge — a price
  5. club — for golf
  6. pound — for dogs
  7. club — a group
  8. rock — a stone
  9. pound — to hit hard
  10. present — a gift
  11. charge — electricity
  12. face — part of the head
  13. rock — music
  14. charge — in control
  15. club — for dancing
  16. face — to point toward
  17. branch — of a tree
  18. pound — a weight
  19. rock — to move gently
  20. cold — not warm
  21. cold — an illness
  22. branch — of a bank
  23. cold — the Cold War
  24. face — to confront

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