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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: chest · court · firm · charge · game · board · season · bass

  1. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  2. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  3. The ball is in your ________________.
  4. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  5. The tickets are free of ________________.
  6. Did you ________________ the meat?
  7. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  8. That was a fun ________________.
  9. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  10. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  11. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  12. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  13. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  14. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  15. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  16. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  17. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  18. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  19. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  20. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  21. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  22. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  23. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  24. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — electricity
  2. season — of the year
  3. court — for sport
  4. game — a kind of play
  5. charge — a price
  6. season — to add flavour
  7. season — in sport
  8. game — a match
  9. bass — the fish
  10. firm — a company
  11. court — of law
  12. firm — decided
  13. game — wild animals
  14. bass — low music
  15. chest — of your body
  16. bass — the instrument
  17. chest — a box
  18. board — a flat piece
  19. charge — in control
  20. board — a committee
  21. court — of a king
  22. chest — of your body
  23. board — to get on
  24. firm — steady

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