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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: wind · fall · pitcher · rush · mine · stand · charge · season

  1. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  2. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  3. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  4. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  5. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  6. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  7. That must've been a ________________.
  8. I can't ________________ this cold.
  9. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  10. Did you ________________ the meat?
  11. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  12. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  13. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  14. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  15. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  16. He is an ace ________________.
  17. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  18. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  19. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  20. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  21. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  22. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  23. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  24. The tickets are free of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — belonging to me
  2. mine — an explosive
  3. fall — to drop
  4. mine — for digging
  5. fall — the season
  6. stand — on your feet
  7. rush — a thrill
  8. stand — to bear
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. season — to add flavour
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. charge — electricity
  13. rush — to hurry
  14. stand — for spectators
  15. rush — hurry
  16. pitcher — in baseball
  17. wind — moving air
  18. charge — in control
  19. season — in sport
  20. wind — moving air
  21. season — of the year
  22. fall — to drop
  23. wind — to turn a key
  24. charge — a price

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