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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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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: safe · cap · kid · chair · perch · bat · content · charge

  1. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  2. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  3. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  4. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  5. The tickets are free of ________________.
  6. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  7. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  8. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  9. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  10. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  11. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  12. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  13. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  14. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  15. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  16. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  17. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  18. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  19. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  20. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  21. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  22. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  23. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  24. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — electricity
  2. charge — in control
  3. bat — for baseball
  4. kid — to tease
  5. charge — a price
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. cap — a lid
  8. safe — a strongbox
  9. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  10. content — happy
  11. cap — a hat
  12. content — videos and posts
  13. cap — of ice
  14. kid — child
  15. chair — a professorship
  16. content — the amount
  17. perch — the fish
  18. safe — out of danger
  19. bat — the animal
  20. safe — out of danger
  21. chair — a leader
  22. bat — in an idiom
  23. chair — to sit on
  24. perch — for a bird

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