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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 120 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: charge · coach · fall · pit · bat · chip · hide · bass

  1. The tickets are free of ________________.
  2. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  3. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  4. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  5. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  6. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  7. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  8. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  9. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  10. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  11. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  12. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  13. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  14. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  15. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  16. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  17. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  18. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  19. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  20. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  21. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  22. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  23. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  24. Have you met the new head ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. charge — a price
  2. bass — low music
  3. bat — in an idiom
  4. fall — to drop
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. hide — to keep secret
  7. charge — electricity
  8. hide — animal skin
  9. chip — for betting
  10. bat — for baseball
  11. fall — to drop
  12. chip — in a computer
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. pit — in a race
  15. pit — a hole
  16. pit — a fruit stone
  17. bass — the fish
  18. charge — in control
  19. fall — the season
  20. bass — the instrument
  21. chip — to eat
  22. bat — the animal
  23. coach — pulled by horses
  24. coach — a trainer

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