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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: swing · charge · present · fine · fall · race

  1. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  2. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  3. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  4. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  5. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  6. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  7. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  8. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  9. David sat on the ________________.
  10. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  11. The tickets are free of ________________.
  12. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  13. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  14. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  15. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  16. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  17. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  18. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. charge — electricity
  3. swing — music
  4. race — humankind
  5. present — a gift
  6. fall — to drop
  7. race — a contest
  8. race — the arms race
  9. swing — to play on
  10. present — the time now
  11. charge — a price
  12. fine — all right
  13. charge — in control
  14. swing — in golf
  15. fall — the season
  16. fine — high quality
  17. present — there
  18. fine — a penalty

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