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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: game · mate · spell · hide · kick · charge · content · chest

  1. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  2. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  3. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  4. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  5. How do you ________________ your surname?
  6. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  7. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  8. Have you found your soul ________________?
  9. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  10. That was a fun ________________.
  11. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  12. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  13. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  14. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  15. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  16. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  17. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  18. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  19. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  20. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  21. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  22. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  23. The tickets are free of ________________.
  24. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. content — videos and posts
  3. spell — a short time
  4. charge — electricity
  5. spell — letters
  6. mate — a friend
  7. kick — with a leg
  8. mate — a partner
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. game — a match
  11. kick — a thrill
  12. mate — to breed
  13. spell — magic
  14. chest — of your body
  15. chest — a box
  16. game — wild animals
  17. hide — animal skin
  18. chest — of your body
  19. kick — in football
  20. content — the amount
  21. content — happy
  22. charge — in control
  23. charge — a price
  24. game — a kind of play

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