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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: cue · charge · ground · chest · current · cap · mine · wake

  1. The tickets are free of ________________.
  2. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  3. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  4. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  5. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  6. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  7. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  8. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  9. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  10. There's no middle ________________.
  11. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  12. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  13. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  14. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  15. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  16. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  17. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  18. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  19. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  20. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  21. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  22. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  23. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  24. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — a price
  2. chest — of your body
  3. wake — a trail
  4. chest — of your body
  5. cue — a signal
  6. cap — a lid
  7. charge — electricity
  8. chest — a box
  9. current — happening now
  10. ground — a position
  11. mine — belonging to me
  12. cap — a hat
  13. current — electric
  14. ground — crushed
  15. mine — an explosive
  16. cap — of ice
  17. cue — for pool
  18. charge — in control
  19. current — of water
  20. mine — for digging
  21. cue — a hint
  22. wake — to stop sleeping
  23. ground — the earth
  24. wake — before a funeral

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