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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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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: cold · charge · fine · perch · pound · pit · kid · fan

  1. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  2. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  3. The tickets are free of ________________.
  4. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  5. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  6. The water is too ________________.
  7. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  8. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  9. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  10. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  11. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  12. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  13. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  14. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  15. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  16. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  17. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  18. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  19. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  20. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  21. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  22. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  23. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  24. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. fine — high quality
  3. charge — a price
  4. fine — all right
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. cold — not warm
  7. charge — electricity
  8. pit — in a race
  9. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  10. fine — a penalty
  11. fan — to cool the air
  12. cold — the Cold War
  13. perch — the fish
  14. kid — child
  15. pit — a hole
  16. pound — for dogs
  17. charge — in control
  18. pound — to hit hard
  19. pit — a fruit stone
  20. pound — a weight
  21. cold — an illness
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. kid — to tease
  24. fan — a supporter

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