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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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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 · pit · snap · roll · last · perch · kid · tube

  1. False peace will not ________________.
  2. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  3. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  4. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  5. We're on a ________________ here.
  6. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  7. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  8. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  9. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  10. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  11. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  12. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  13. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  14. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  15. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  16. The tickets are free of ________________.
  17. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  18. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  19. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  20. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  21. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  22. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  23. I'll be taking the ________________.
  24. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. last — to go on
  2. pit — a hole
  3. last — finally
  4. tube — in a tire
  5. roll — on a roll
  6. roll — a list
  7. charge — electricity
  8. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  9. snap — to click
  10. charge — in control
  11. kid — to tease
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. pit — a fruit stone
  14. last — final
  15. snap — to snap out of it
  16. charge — a price
  17. tube — a container
  18. perch — the fish
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. roll — a cake
  21. pit — in a race
  22. snap — to speak sharply
  23. tube — the underground
  24. kid — child

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