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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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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. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  2. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  3. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  4. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  5. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  6. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  7. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  8. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  9. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  10. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  11. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  12. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  13. False peace will not ________________.
  14. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  15. How do you ________________ your surname?
  16. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  17. The tickets are free of ________________.
  18. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  19. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  20. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  21. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  22. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  23. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  24. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — electricity
  2. wind — moving air
  3. bark — to shout
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. patient — calm and waiting
  6. last — finally
  7. march — music
  8. spell — a short time
  9. chest — of your body
  10. chest — a box
  11. spell — magic
  12. charge — in control
  13. last — to go on
  14. bark — of a tree
  15. spell — letters
  16. march — the month
  17. charge — a price
  18. wind — to turn a key
  19. patient — a sick person
  20. wind — moving air
  21. last — final
  22. chest — of your body
  23. march — the month
  24. bark — a dog's sound

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