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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: shower · charge · pop · land · pound · stick · bat · snap

  1. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  2. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  3. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  4. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  5. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  6. When are we going to ________________?
  7. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  8. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  9. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  10. We're almost out of ________________.
  11. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  12. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  13. The tickets are free of ________________.
  14. You don't need to ________________ round.
  15. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  16. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  17. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  18. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  19. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  20. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  21. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  22. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  23. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  24. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — to attach or keep to
  2. shower — a meteor shower
  3. stick — a piece of wood
  4. bat — the animal
  5. shower — to wash
  6. land — to come down
  7. bat — for baseball
  8. bat — in an idiom
  9. charge — electricity
  10. pop — soda
  11. snap — to speak sharply
  12. pop — music
  13. charge — a price
  14. pop — to visit
  15. pound — to hit hard
  16. pound — a weight
  17. shower — rain
  18. land — ground
  19. snap — to click
  20. land — a country
  21. snap — to snap out of it
  22. pound — for dogs
  23. stick — a piece of wood
  24. charge — in control

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