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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: bat · calf · charge · chair · field · dip · cap · trunk

  1. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  2. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. The tickets are free of ________________.
  5. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  6. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  7. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  8. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  9. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  10. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  11. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  12. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  13. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  14. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  15. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  16. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  17. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  18. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  19. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  20. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  21. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  22. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  23. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  24. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — for baseball
  2. field — farmland
  3. field — for sport
  4. charge — a price
  5. dip — to dunk
  6. cap — of ice
  7. bat — in an idiom
  8. cap — a hat
  9. calf — a young animal
  10. charge — in control
  11. chair — a leader
  12. trunk — of a car
  13. cap — a lid
  14. charge — electricity
  15. calf — a young animal
  16. dip — to sink
  17. bat — the animal
  18. dip — a sauce
  19. trunk — of an elephant
  20. calf — of the leg
  21. chair — a professorship
  22. field — a subject
  23. chair — to sit on
  24. trunk — of a tree

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