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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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  2. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  5. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  6. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  7. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  8. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  9. How do you ________________ your surname?
  10. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  11. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  12. That was ________________ to happen.
  13. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  14. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  15. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  16. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  17. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  18. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  19. The tickets are free of ________________.
  20. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  21. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  22. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  23. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  24. I got dealt a bad ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — in control
  2. spell — magic
  3. field — for sport
  4. bore — gave birth
  5. field — farmland
  6. bound — tied together
  7. wound — an injury
  8. spell — a short time
  9. spell — letters
  10. mine — belonging to me
  11. field — a subject
  12. bound — certain
  13. charge — electricity
  14. hand — help
  15. hand — part of the body
  16. bound — obliged
  17. bore — to drill
  18. wound — an injury
  19. charge — a price
  20. mine — for digging
  21. bore — to tire
  22. wound — past of 'wind'
  23. mine — an explosive
  24. hand — in cards

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