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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.

Words on the sheet
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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 · tube · straw · swing · spring · snap · file · coach

  1. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  2. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  3. I'll be taking the ________________.
  4. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  5. David sat on the ________________.
  6. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  7. The tickets are free of ________________.
  8. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  9. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  10. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  11. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  12. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  13. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  14. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  15. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  16. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  17. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  18. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  19. Have you met the new head ________________?
  20. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  21. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  22. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  23. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  24. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — in control
  2. coach — pulled by horses
  3. tube — the underground
  4. spring — a coil
  5. swing — to play on
  6. swing — music
  7. charge — a price
  8. file — a line of people
  9. file — a document
  10. charge — electricity
  11. snap — to snap out of it
  12. spring — of water
  13. tube — in a tire
  14. swing — in golf
  15. straw — dry grass
  16. snap — to speak sharply
  17. straw — to clutch at straws
  18. tube — a container
  19. coach — a trainer
  20. spring — the season
  21. snap — to click
  22. coach — a trainer
  23. straw — a straw man
  24. file — a tool

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