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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: mark · charge · wave · kid · tube · court · march · club

  1. The tickets are free of ________________.
  2. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  3. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  4. I'll be taking the ________________.
  5. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  6. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  7. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  8. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  9. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  10. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  11. The ball is in your ________________.
  12. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  13. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  14. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  15. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  16. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  17. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  18. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  19. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  20. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  21. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  22. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  23. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  24. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — a price
  2. mark — a grade
  3. club — for golf
  4. tube — the underground
  5. mark — to pay attention
  6. club — a group
  7. march — the month
  8. wave — a sudden rise
  9. charge — electricity
  10. march — music
  11. court — for sport
  12. tube — a container
  13. club — for dancing
  14. tube — in a tire
  15. kid — to tease
  16. wave — of the sea
  17. charge — in control
  18. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  19. court — of law
  20. kid — child
  21. mark — a trace
  22. wave — with your hand
  23. court — of a king
  24. march — the month

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