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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: perch · snap · court · jam · date · charge · degree · wound

  1. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  2. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  3. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  4. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  5. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  6. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  7. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  8. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  9. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  10. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  11. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  12. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  13. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  14. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  15. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  16. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  17. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  18. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  19. The tickets are free of ________________.
  20. The ball is in your ________________.
  21. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  22. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  23. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  24. Have you settled on a ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. charge — in control
  2. snap — to click
  3. date — the fruit
  4. jam — to spread on bread
  5. date — on the calendar
  6. snap — to snap out of it
  7. wound — an injury
  8. wound — an injury
  9. court — of a king
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. charge — electricity
  12. snap — to speak sharply
  13. degree — an amount
  14. degree — from a university
  15. degree — temperature
  16. jam — a tight spot
  17. court — of law
  18. jam — in traffic
  19. charge — a price
  20. court — for sport
  21. perch — the fish
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. wound — past of 'wind'
  24. date — on the calendar

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