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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: chip · craft · chair · perch · charge · prune · bark · tear

  1. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  2. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  3. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  4. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  5. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  6. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  7. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  8. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  9. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  10. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  11. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  12. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  13. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  14. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  15. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  16. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  17. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  18. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  19. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  20. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  21. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  22. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  23. The tickets are free of ________________.
  24. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — electricity
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. prune — the fruit
  4. chair — a professorship
  5. bark — to shout
  6. craft — boats
  7. charge — in control
  8. prune — to trim
  9. chip — in a computer
  10. bark — a dog's sound
  11. prune — to trim
  12. craft — a handicraft
  13. tear — to rip
  14. tear — from crying
  15. perch — the fish
  16. tear — from crying
  17. chair — to sit on
  18. bark — of a tree
  19. chip — for betting
  20. perch — for a bird
  21. craft — a skill
  22. chip — to eat
  23. charge — a price
  24. chair — a leader

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