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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 · field · kid · clip · mug · pop · plane · perch

  1. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  2. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  3. Where did you ________________ them?
  4. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  5. You don't need to ________________ round.
  6. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  7. We're almost out of ________________.
  8. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  9. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  10. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  11. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  12. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  13. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  14. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  15. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  16. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  17. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  18. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  19. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  20. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  21. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  22. The ________________ took off on time.
  23. The tickets are free of ________________.
  24. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. mug — to rob
  4. kid — child
  5. pop — to visit
  6. charge — electricity
  7. pop — soda
  8. clip — for paper
  9. charge — in control
  10. mug — a face
  11. clip — to cut
  12. pop — music
  13. field — farmland
  14. clip — a video
  15. field — for sport
  16. plane — a tool
  17. kid — to tease
  18. plane — in geometry
  19. field — a subject
  20. mug — a cup
  21. perch — for a bird
  22. plane — an aircraft
  23. charge — a price
  24. perch — the fish

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