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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: bat · net · prune · content · charge · perch · club · roll

  1. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  2. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  3. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  4. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  5. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  6. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  7. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  8. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  9. We're on a ________________ here.
  10. The tickets are free of ________________.
  11. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  12. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  13. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  14. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  15. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  16. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  17. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  18. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  19. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  20. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  21. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  22. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  23. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  24. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — electricity
  2. net — after costs
  3. roll — a list
  4. club — for golf
  5. bat — in an idiom
  6. club — for dancing
  7. perch — the fish
  8. content — the amount
  9. roll — on a roll
  10. charge — a price
  11. net — in sport
  12. content — happy
  13. bat — for baseball
  14. bat — the animal
  15. prune — the fruit
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. prune — to trim
  18. charge — in control
  19. roll — a cake
  20. club — a group
  21. net — for catching
  22. prune — to trim
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. content — videos and posts

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