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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: charge · degree · mark · row · land · bat · staff · cabinet

  1. The tickets are free of ________________.
  2. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  3. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  4. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  5. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  6. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  7. What do you think of the new ________________?
  8. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  9. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  10. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  11. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  12. When are we going to ________________?
  13. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  14. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  15. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  16. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  17. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  18. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  19. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  20. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  21. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  22. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  23. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  24. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.

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. mark — to pay attention
  4. charge — in control
  5. bat — in an idiom
  6. land — a country
  7. cabinet — ministers
  8. staff — employees
  9. bat — the animal
  10. mark — a trace
  11. staff — employees
  12. land — to come down
  13. degree — an amount
  14. land — ground
  15. staff — a stick
  16. cabinet — ministers
  17. cabinet — a cupboard
  18. degree — temperature
  19. bat — for baseball
  20. row — a line
  21. charge — electricity
  22. row — a quarrel
  23. degree — from a university
  24. row — to paddle

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