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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.

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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 · ground · squash · chair · bat · file · foot · toast

  1. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  2. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  3. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  4. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  5. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  6. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  7. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  8. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  9. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  10. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  11. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  12. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  13. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  14. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  15. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  16. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  17. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  18. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  19. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  20. There's no middle ________________.
  21. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  22. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  23. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  24. The tickets are free of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the vegetable
  2. bat — in an idiom
  3. ground — crushed
  4. file — a line of people
  5. chair — to sit on
  6. file — a tool
  7. chair — a professorship
  8. bat — the animal
  9. toast — the most admired
  10. foot — a measure
  11. bat — for baseball
  12. foot — part of the body
  13. squash — the sport
  14. charge — electricity
  15. toast — bread
  16. chair — a leader
  17. foot — the bottom
  18. toast — a drink to someone
  19. ground — the earth
  20. ground — a position
  21. charge — in control
  22. file — a document
  23. squash — to crush
  24. charge — a price

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