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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
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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: degree · charge · cold · wake · object · swing · jam · pop

  1. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  2. You don't need to ________________ round.
  3. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  4. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  5. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  6. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  7. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  8. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  9. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  10. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  11. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  12. The water is too ________________.
  13. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  14. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  17. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  18. David sat on the ________________.
  19. The tickets are free of ________________.
  20. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  21. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  22. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  23. We're almost out of ________________.
  24. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.

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

Answer key

  1. jam — a tight spot
  2. pop — to visit
  3. degree — temperature
  4. wake — before a funeral
  5. swing — music
  6. object — to protest
  7. charge — in control
  8. object — a thing
  9. object — an aim
  10. degree — an amount
  11. pop — music
  12. cold — not warm
  13. charge — electricity
  14. degree — from a university
  15. cold — an illness
  16. wake — a trail
  17. wake — to stop sleeping
  18. swing — to play on
  19. charge — a price
  20. jam — in traffic
  21. cold — the Cold War
  22. jam — to spread on bread
  23. pop — soda
  24. swing — in golf

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