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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: branch · saw · chair · current · charge · game · field · face

  1. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  2. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  3. He works in a ________________ mill.
  4. The tickets are free of ________________.
  5. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  6. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  7. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  8. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  9. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  10. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  11. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  12. She's very handy with a ________________.
  13. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  14. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  15. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  16. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  17. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  18. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  19. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  20. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  21. That was a fun ________________.
  22. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  23. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  24. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — electricity
  2. saw — past of 'see'
  3. saw — the tool
  4. charge — a price
  5. charge — in control
  6. chair — a professorship
  7. current — happening now
  8. chair — to sit on
  9. current — electric
  10. branch — a division
  11. face — to confront
  12. saw — the tool
  13. chair — a leader
  14. current — of water
  15. face — part of the head
  16. face — to point toward
  17. game — a kind of play
  18. field — for sport
  19. field — farmland
  20. branch — of a bank
  21. game — a match
  22. branch — of a tree
  23. field — a subject
  24. game — wild animals

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