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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 116 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: game · shower · pound · charge · scale · craft · march · mouse

  1. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  2. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  3. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  4. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  5. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  6. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  7. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  8. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  9. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  10. The tickets are free of ________________.
  11. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  12. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  13. That was a fun ________________.
  14. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  15. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  16. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  17. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  18. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  19. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  20. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  21. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  22. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  23. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  24. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a kind of play
  2. charge — in control
  3. craft — boats
  4. charge — electricity
  5. mouse — the animal
  6. pound — for dogs
  7. march — the month
  8. scale — in music
  9. mouse — the animal
  10. charge — a price
  11. craft — a handicraft
  12. pound — to hit hard
  13. game — a match
  14. march — music
  15. shower — rain
  16. pound — a weight
  17. scale — size or range
  18. march — the month
  19. game — wild animals
  20. shower — a meteor shower
  21. shower — to wash
  22. mouse — for a computer
  23. craft — a skill
  24. scale — for weighing

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