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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: charge · chair · nail · face · pitch · mine · mouse · hand

  1. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  2. The ________________ went through the wall.
  3. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  4. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  5. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  6. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  7. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  8. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  9. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  10. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  11. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  12. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  13. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  14. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  15. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  16. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  17. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  18. The tickets are free of ________________.
  19. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  20. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  21. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  22. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  23. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  24. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — electricity
  2. nail — for a hammer
  3. charge — in control
  4. hand — in cards
  5. hand — part of the body
  6. hand — help
  7. mine — for digging
  8. mouse — the animal
  9. mouse — for a computer
  10. chair — a professorship
  11. face — to confront
  12. face — part of the head
  13. chair — a leader
  14. mouse — the animal
  15. nail — for a hammer
  16. chair — to sit on
  17. pitch — a sales talk
  18. charge — a price
  19. face — to point toward
  20. nail — on a finger
  21. pitch — a sports field
  22. mine — belonging to me
  23. mine — an explosive
  24. pitch — completely

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