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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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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: chest · sharp · racket · wind · deal · pop · charge · scale

  1. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  2. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  3. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  4. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  5. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  6. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  7. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  8. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  9. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  10. It's one o'clock ________________.
  11. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  12. You don't need to ________________ round.
  13. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  14. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  15. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  16. The tickets are free of ________________.
  17. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  18. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  19. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  20. We're almost out of ________________.
  21. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  22. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  23. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  24. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. scale — for weighing
  2. racket — a loud noise
  3. racket — for tennis
  4. deal — to handle
  5. charge — in control
  6. chest — a box
  7. chest — of your body
  8. sharp — clever
  9. racket — for tennis
  10. sharp — exactly
  11. chest — of your body
  12. pop — to visit
  13. wind — moving air
  14. deal — a big deal
  15. sharp — with an edge
  16. charge — a price
  17. pop — music
  18. charge — electricity
  19. wind — moving air
  20. pop — soda
  21. deal — an agreement
  22. wind — to turn a key
  23. scale — in music
  24. scale — size or range

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