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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: pop · cap · chest · pitch · calf · degree · band · charge

  1. The tickets are free of ________________.
  2. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  3. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  4. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  5. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  6. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  7. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  8. You don't need to ________________ round.
  9. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  10. We're almost out of ________________.
  11. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  12. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  13. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  14. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  15. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  16. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  17. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  18. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  19. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  20. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  21. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  22. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  23. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  24. The polar ice ________________ is melting.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — a price
  2. charge — electricity
  3. charge — in control
  4. chest — of your body
  5. calf — a young animal
  6. pop — music
  7. cap — a lid
  8. pop — to visit
  9. pitch — a sales talk
  10. pop — soda
  11. cap — a hat
  12. degree — an amount
  13. band — a ring
  14. chest — a box
  15. band — a rubber band
  16. calf — of the leg
  17. band — a music group
  18. pitch — completely
  19. degree — from a university
  20. chest — of your body
  21. degree — temperature
  22. calf — a young animal
  23. pitch — a sports field
  24. cap — of ice

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