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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. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  3. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  4. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  5. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  6. When was this ________________ built?
  7. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  8. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  9. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  10. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  11. The King held a masked ________________.
  12. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  13. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  14. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  15. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  16. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  17. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  18. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  19. The tickets are free of ________________.
  20. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  21. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  22. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  23. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  24. We're on a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — electricity
  2. roll — a list
  3. roll — a cake
  4. field — for sport
  5. ball — a round shape
  6. temple — a place of worship
  7. hand — in cards
  8. field — farmland
  9. bore — gave birth
  10. bore — to tire
  11. ball — a dance
  12. trunk — of an elephant
  13. temple — side of the head
  14. hand — help
  15. charge — in control
  16. temple — a place of worship
  17. field — a subject
  18. ball — a great time
  19. charge — a price
  20. hand — part of the body
  21. bore — to drill
  22. trunk — of a tree
  23. trunk — of a car
  24. roll — on a roll

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