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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: rock · clip · bark · rash · cell · wind · mate · charge

  1. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  2. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  3. He was locked up in a ________________.
  4. The tickets are free of ________________.
  5. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  6. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  7. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  8. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  9. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  10. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  11. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  12. Have you found your soul ________________?
  13. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  14. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  15. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  16. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  17. Don't do anything ________________.
  18. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  19. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  20. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  21. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  22. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  23. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  24. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — a phone
  2. charge — in control
  3. cell — in a prison
  4. charge — a price
  5. wind — moving air
  6. mate — to breed
  7. bark — of a tree
  8. rash — on the skin
  9. bark — a dog's sound
  10. bark — to shout
  11. rock — to move gently
  12. mate — a partner
  13. rash — a series
  14. cell — in biology
  15. rock — a stone
  16. wind — to turn a key
  17. rash — hasty
  18. clip — to cut
  19. charge — electricity
  20. mate — a friend
  21. rock — music
  22. clip — for paper
  23. clip — a video
  24. wind — moving air

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