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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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 · bass · rash · arm · row · shower · squash · chest

  1. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  2. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  3. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  4. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  5. The tickets are free of ________________.
  6. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  7. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  8. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  9. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  10. My father caught me by the ________________.
  11. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  12. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  13. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  14. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  15. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  16. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  17. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  18. Don't do anything ________________.
  19. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  20. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  21. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  22. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  23. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  24. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — electricity
  2. bass — the fish
  3. chest — of your body
  4. bass — the instrument
  5. charge — a price
  6. row — a line
  7. row — a quarrel
  8. chest — a box
  9. shower — rain
  10. arm — part of the body
  11. arm — part of the body
  12. bass — low music
  13. chest — of your body
  14. shower — to wash
  15. rash — on the skin
  16. squash — the sport
  17. squash — the vegetable
  18. rash — hasty
  19. shower — a meteor shower
  20. row — to paddle
  21. squash — to crush
  22. arm — a part of something
  23. charge — in control
  24. rash — a series

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