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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: mug · charge · bound · game · current · file · chest · wave

  1. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  2. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  3. That was a fun ________________.
  4. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  5. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  6. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  7. The tickets are free of ________________.
  8. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  9. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  10. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  11. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  12. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  13. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  14. Where did you ________________ them?
  15. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  16. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  17. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  18. That was ________________ to happen.
  19. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  20. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  21. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  22. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  23. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  24. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — electricity
  2. current — happening now
  3. game — a match
  4. charge — in control
  5. bound — obliged
  6. file — a line of people
  7. charge — a price
  8. chest — of your body
  9. mug — a face
  10. game — wild animals
  11. bound — tied together
  12. file — a tool
  13. wave — of the sea
  14. mug — to rob
  15. chest — a box
  16. file — a document
  17. wave — a sudden rise
  18. bound — certain
  19. wave — with your hand
  20. current — electric
  21. chest — of your body
  22. current — of water
  23. mug — a cup
  24. game — a kind of play

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