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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: bound · land · charge · bear · club · cap · snap · rash

  1. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  2. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  3. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  4. The tickets are free of ________________.
  5. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  6. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  7. Don't do anything ________________.
  8. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  9. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  10. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  11. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  12. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  13. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  14. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  15. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  16. That was ________________ to happen.
  17. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  18. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  19. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  20. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  21. When are we going to ________________?
  22. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  23. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  24. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a hat
  2. cap — a lid
  3. bound — obliged
  4. charge — a price
  5. bound — tied together
  6. charge — electricity
  7. rash — hasty
  8. club — for dancing
  9. cap — of ice
  10. snap — to speak sharply
  11. bear — the animal
  12. land — a country
  13. bear — to put up with
  14. snap — to snap out of it
  15. club — a group
  16. bound — certain
  17. snap — to click
  18. club — for golf
  19. land — ground
  20. rash — on the skin
  21. land — to come down
  22. bear — the animal
  23. rash — a series
  24. charge — in control

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