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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: pitch · file · sharp · charge · hand · spring · mug · trunk

  1. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  2. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  5. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  6. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  7. The tickets are free of ________________.
  8. Where did you ________________ them?
  9. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  10. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  11. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  12. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  13. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  14. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  15. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  16. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  17. It's one o'clock ________________.
  18. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  19. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  20. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  21. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  22. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  23. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  24. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — completely
  2. file — a tool
  3. spring — a coil
  4. trunk — of a car
  5. hand — help
  6. charge — electricity
  7. charge — a price
  8. mug — to rob
  9. charge — in control
  10. mug — a face
  11. pitch — a sales talk
  12. spring — of water
  13. hand — in cards
  14. sharp — clever
  15. sharp — with an edge
  16. trunk — of an elephant
  17. sharp — exactly
  18. trunk — of a tree
  19. mug — a cup
  20. spring — the season
  21. pitch — a sports field
  22. hand — part of the body
  23. file — a line of people
  24. file — a document

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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