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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 · race · snap · game · bound · coach · hide · kick

  1. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  2. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  3. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  4. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  5. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  6. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  7. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  8. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  9. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  10. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  11. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  12. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  13. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  14. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  15. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  16. The tickets are free of ________________.
  17. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  18. Have you met the new head ________________?
  19. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  20. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  21. That was ________________ to happen.
  22. That was a fun ________________.
  23. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  24. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. charge — electricity
  3. bound — obliged
  4. snap — to snap out of it
  5. hide — animal skin
  6. charge — in control
  7. race — humankind
  8. race — a contest
  9. game — a kind of play
  10. bound — tied together
  11. snap — to speak sharply
  12. kick — a thrill
  13. coach — pulled by horses
  14. snap — to click
  15. kick — with a leg
  16. charge — a price
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. coach — a trainer
  19. kick — in football
  20. hide — to keep secret
  21. bound — certain
  22. game — a match
  23. game — wild animals
  24. race — the arms race

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