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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: bass · sharp · chest · root · game · charge · can · net

  1. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  2. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  3. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  4. It's one o'clock ________________.
  5. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  6. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  7. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  8. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  9. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  10. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  11. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  12. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  13. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  14. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  15. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  16. The tickets are free of ________________.
  17. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  18. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  19. That was a fun ________________.
  20. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  21. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  22. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  23. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  24. The ball hit the back of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. bass — low music
  3. root — of a word
  4. sharp — exactly
  5. game — wild animals
  6. can — a tin
  7. charge — electricity
  8. bass — the instrument
  9. root — of a plant
  10. can — to be able to
  11. chest — a box
  12. charge — in control
  13. root — the cause
  14. bass — the fish
  15. game — a kind of play
  16. charge — a price
  17. chest — of your body
  18. net — for catching
  19. game — a match
  20. sharp — with an edge
  21. sharp — clever
  22. net — after costs
  23. can — a tin
  24. net — in sport

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