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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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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: charge · file · stick · club · tear · field

  1. The tickets are free of ________________.
  2. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  3. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  4. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  5. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  6. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  7. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  10. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  11. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  12. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  13. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  14. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  17. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  18. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — a price
  2. field — a subject
  3. file — a document
  4. stick — a piece of wood
  5. file — a line of people
  6. file — a tool
  7. tear — from crying
  8. field — for sport
  9. club — a group
  10. club — for dancing
  11. stick — to attach or keep to
  12. stick — a piece of wood
  13. charge — electricity
  14. charge — in control
  15. field — farmland
  16. club — for golf
  17. tear — from crying
  18. tear — to rip

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