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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: net · sharp · chip · charge · band · row · cell · straw

  1. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  2. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  3. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  4. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  5. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  6. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  7. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  8. He was locked up in a ________________.
  9. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  10. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  11. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  12. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  13. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  14. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  15. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  16. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  17. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  18. It's one o'clock ________________.
  19. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  20. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  21. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  22. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  23. The tickets are free of ________________.
  24. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. sharp — with an edge
  3. cell — in biology
  4. chip — in a computer
  5. straw — dry grass
  6. row — a quarrel
  7. straw — to clutch at straws
  8. cell — in a prison
  9. net — after costs
  10. row — to paddle
  11. sharp — clever
  12. straw — a straw man
  13. net — in sport
  14. chip — for betting
  15. chip — to eat
  16. charge — electricity
  17. cell — a phone
  18. sharp — exactly
  19. band — a rubber band
  20. row — a line
  21. band — a music group
  22. net — for catching
  23. charge — a price
  24. charge — in control

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