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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: charge · cell · band · cap · stick · staff · rash · wound

  1. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  2. He was locked up in a ________________.
  3. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  4. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  5. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  6. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  7. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  8. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  9. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  10. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  11. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  12. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  13. The tickets are free of ________________.
  14. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  15. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  16. Don't do anything ________________.
  17. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  18. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  19. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  20. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  21. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  22. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  23. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  24. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — a piece of wood
  2. cell — in a prison
  3. cell — in biology
  4. band — a ring
  5. stick — a piece of wood
  6. stick — to attach or keep to
  7. wound — an injury
  8. rash — a series
  9. staff — employees
  10. cap — a hat
  11. wound — past of 'wind'
  12. rash — on the skin
  13. charge — a price
  14. cap — a lid
  15. staff — employees
  16. rash — hasty
  17. cap — of ice
  18. charge — electricity
  19. band — a music group
  20. band — a rubber band
  21. staff — a stick
  22. cell — a phone
  23. wound — an injury
  24. charge — in control

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