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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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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 · calf · last · chair · shower · band · fine · pitcher

  1. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  2. He is an ace ________________.
  3. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  4. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  5. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  6. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  7. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  8. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  9. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  10. False peace will not ________________.
  11. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  12. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  13. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  14. The tickets are free of ________________.
  15. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  16. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  17. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  18. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  19. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  20. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  21. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  22. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  23. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  24. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — electricity
  2. pitcher — in baseball
  3. fine — high quality
  4. fine — a penalty
  5. band — a music group
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. shower — a meteor shower
  8. band — a ring
  9. last — final
  10. last — to go on
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. fine — all right
  13. chair — a professorship
  14. charge — a price
  15. chair — to sit on
  16. calf — a young animal
  17. last — finally
  18. chair — a leader
  19. shower — to wash
  20. calf — a young animal
  21. charge — in control
  22. calf — of the leg
  23. shower — rain
  24. band — a rubber band

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