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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: perch · wave · chest · court · date · charge · chip · hand

  1. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  2. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  3. The ball is in your ________________.
  4. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  5. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  6. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  7. The tickets are free of ________________.
  8. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  9. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  10. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  11. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  12. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  13. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  14. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  15. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  16. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  17. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  18. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  19. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  20. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  21. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  22. Have you settled on a ________________?
  23. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  24. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — in cards
  2. date — on the calendar
  3. court — for sport
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. hand — part of the body
  6. chip — for betting
  7. charge — a price
  8. wave — a sudden rise
  9. chest — of your body
  10. wave — of the sea
  11. chest — a box
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. hand — help
  14. charge — electricity
  15. court — of a king
  16. perch — the fish
  17. chip — to eat
  18. court — of law
  19. chest — of your body
  20. chip — in a computer
  21. charge — in control
  22. date — on the calendar
  23. date — the fruit
  24. wave — with your hand

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