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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: field · charge · snap · toast · branch · net · cue · chair

  1. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  2. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  5. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  6. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  7. The tickets are free of ________________.
  8. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  9. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  10. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  11. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  12. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  13. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  14. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  15. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  16. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  17. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  18. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  19. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  20. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  21. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  22. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  23. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  24. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to click
  2. toast — the most admired
  3. field — farmland
  4. cue — a signal
  5. toast — a drink to someone
  6. toast — bread
  7. charge — a price
  8. cue — for pool
  9. chair — to sit on
  10. snap — to snap out of it
  11. snap — to speak sharply
  12. cue — a hint
  13. field — for sport
  14. branch — of a tree
  15. net — after costs
  16. chair — a leader
  17. branch — a division
  18. chair — a professorship
  19. net — in sport
  20. charge — electricity
  21. net — for catching
  22. branch — of a bank
  23. charge — in control
  24. field — a subject

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