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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 120 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: kid · wake · rock · charge · spring · pound · stick · clip

  1. The tickets are free of ________________.
  2. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  3. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  4. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  5. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  6. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  7. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  8. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  9. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  10. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  11. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  12. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  13. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  14. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  15. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  16. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  17. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  18. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  19. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  20. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  21. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  22. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  23. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  24. We were using a ________________ as a seat.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — a price
  2. charge — electricity
  3. clip — a video
  4. stick — to attach or keep to
  5. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  6. spring — the season
  7. wake — before a funeral
  8. clip — for paper
  9. pound — a weight
  10. kid — to tease
  11. pound — to hit hard
  12. wake — to stop sleeping
  13. spring — of water
  14. stick — a piece of wood
  15. rock — to move gently
  16. clip — to cut
  17. spring — a coil
  18. wake — a trail
  19. charge — in control
  20. pound — for dogs
  21. kid — child
  22. rock — music
  23. stick — a piece of wood
  24. rock — a stone

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