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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: cold · chair · cell · chip · spell · ruler · bass · charge

  1. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  2. He was locked up in a ________________.
  3. The tickets are free of ________________.
  4. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  5. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  6. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  7. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  8. The water is too ________________.
  9. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  10. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  11. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  12. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  13. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  14. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  15. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  16. How do you ________________ your surname?
  17. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  18. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  19. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  20. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  21. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  22. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  23. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  24. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — the fish
  2. cell — in a prison
  3. charge — a price
  4. cold — an illness
  5. charge — electricity
  6. chair — a professorship
  7. cell — in biology
  8. cold — not warm
  9. spell — magic
  10. chip — in a computer
  11. spell — a short time
  12. ruler — a monarch
  13. cold — the Cold War
  14. ruler — for measuring
  15. chair — a leader
  16. spell — letters
  17. bass — the instrument
  18. chip — to eat
  19. charge — in control
  20. chip — for betting
  21. chair — to sit on
  22. cell — a phone
  23. bass — low music
  24. ruler — for measuring

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