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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 116 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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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: cell · snap · charge · firm · chair · current · kid · land

  1. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  2. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  3. When are we going to ________________?
  4. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  5. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  6. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  7. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  8. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  9. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  10. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  11. The tickets are free of ________________.
  12. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  13. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  14. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  15. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  16. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  17. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  18. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  19. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  20. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  21. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  22. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  23. He was locked up in a ________________.
  24. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to speak sharply
  2. firm — decided
  3. land — to come down
  4. current — electric
  5. current — happening now
  6. cell — in biology
  7. chair — to sit on
  8. kid — child
  9. current — of water
  10. firm — a company
  11. charge — a price
  12. chair — a professorship
  13. snap — to snap out of it
  14. land — a country
  15. snap — to click
  16. chair — a leader
  17. land — ground
  18. charge — in control
  19. kid — to tease
  20. charge — electricity
  21. cell — a phone
  22. firm — steady
  23. cell — in a prison
  24. kid — young goat (kid gloves)

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