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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: rush · wax · mate · cell · jam · charge · bass · bat

  1. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  2. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  3. The tickets are free of ________________.
  4. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  5. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  6. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  7. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  8. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  9. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  10. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  11. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  12. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  13. That must've been a ________________.
  14. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  15. Have you found your soul ________________?
  16. He was locked up in a ________________.
  17. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  18. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  19. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  20. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  21. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  22. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  23. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  24. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.

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

Answer key

  1. jam — in traffic
  2. rush — hurry
  3. charge — a price
  4. wax — for sculpting
  5. cell — a phone
  6. cell — in biology
  7. wax — to grow
  8. bat — the animal
  9. bass — the fish
  10. wax — in the ear
  11. rush — to hurry
  12. jam — a tight spot
  13. rush — a thrill
  14. bat — in an idiom
  15. mate — a partner
  16. cell — in a prison
  17. mate — to breed
  18. bat — for baseball
  19. bass — the instrument
  20. bass — low music
  21. charge — electricity
  22. jam — to spread on bread
  23. mate — a friend
  24. charge — in control

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