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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 · hand · snap · current · cell · firm · season · game

  1. He was locked up in a ________________.
  2. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  3. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  4. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  5. Did you ________________ the meat?
  6. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  7. That was a fun ________________.
  8. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  9. The tickets are free of ________________.
  10. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  11. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  12. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  13. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  14. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  15. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  16. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  17. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  18. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  19. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  20. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  21. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  22. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  23. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  24. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in a prison
  2. snap — to snap out of it
  3. hand — help
  4. charge — electricity
  5. season — to add flavour
  6. game — wild animals
  7. game — a match
  8. game — a kind of play
  9. charge — a price
  10. firm — decided
  11. current — electric
  12. snap — to speak sharply
  13. charge — in control
  14. firm — a company
  15. snap — to click
  16. current — of water
  17. hand — part of the body
  18. season — in sport
  19. hand — in cards
  20. season — of the year
  21. cell — a phone
  22. firm — steady
  23. cell — in biology
  24. current — happening now

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