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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: cell · pop · wave · bat · bound · bore · chest · charge

  1. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  2. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  3. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  4. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  5. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  6. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  7. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  8. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  9. You don't need to ________________ round.
  10. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  11. He was locked up in a ________________.
  12. The tickets are free of ________________.
  13. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  14. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  15. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  16. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  17. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  18. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  19. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  20. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  21. We're almost out of ________________.
  22. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  23. That was ________________ to happen.
  24. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.

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

Answer key

  1. wave — of the sea
  2. cell — a phone
  3. bound — obliged
  4. charge — electricity
  5. bore — gave birth
  6. chest — of your body
  7. pop — music
  8. bore — to tire
  9. pop — to visit
  10. charge — in control
  11. cell — in a prison
  12. charge — a price
  13. bat — in an idiom
  14. chest — a box
  15. bore — to drill
  16. wave — with your hand
  17. bat — for baseball
  18. wave — a sudden rise
  19. bound — tied together
  20. cell — in biology
  21. pop — soda
  22. chest — of your body
  23. bound — certain
  24. bat — the animal

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