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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: charge · firm · pit · swing · cold · tube · wound · ground

  1. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  2. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  3. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  4. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  5. I'll be taking the ________________.
  6. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  7. There's no middle ________________.
  8. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  9. David sat on the ________________.
  10. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  11. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  12. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  13. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  14. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  17. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  18. The water is too ________________.
  19. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  20. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  21. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  22. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  23. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  24. The tickets are free of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — crushed
  2. tube — in a tire
  3. swing — music
  4. swing — in golf
  5. tube — the underground
  6. charge — electricity
  7. ground — a position
  8. wound — past of 'wind'
  9. swing — to play on
  10. pit — in a race
  11. charge — in control
  12. wound — an injury
  13. ground — the earth
  14. firm — steady
  15. cold — an illness
  16. wound — an injury
  17. cold — the Cold War
  18. cold — not warm
  19. pit — a fruit stone
  20. firm — decided
  21. tube — a container
  22. firm — a company
  23. pit — a hole
  24. charge — a price

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