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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: club · root · chest · rest · charge · bark · mug · face

  1. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  2. The tickets are free of ________________.
  3. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  4. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  5. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  6. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  7. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  8. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  9. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  10. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  11. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  12. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  13. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  14. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  15. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  16. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  17. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  18. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  19. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  20. Where did you ________________ them?
  21. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  22. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  23. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  24. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — electricity
  2. charge — a price
  3. club — for dancing
  4. rest — what's left
  5. rest — a break
  6. face — to confront
  7. bark — of a tree
  8. chest — of your body
  9. chest — of your body
  10. club — a group
  11. rest — what's left
  12. charge — in control
  13. mug — a cup
  14. bark — a dog's sound
  15. bark — to shout
  16. root — of a word
  17. face — to point toward
  18. mug — a face
  19. root — of a plant
  20. mug — to rob
  21. chest — a box
  22. face — part of the head
  23. club — for golf
  24. root — the cause

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