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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: kick · fall · bound · charge · cold · can · fan · spring

  1. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  2. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  3. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  4. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  5. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  6. The water is too ________________.
  7. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  8. The tickets are free of ________________.
  9. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  10. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  11. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  12. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  13. That was ________________ to happen.
  14. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  15. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  16. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  17. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  18. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  19. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  20. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  21. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  22. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  23. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  24. We are ________________ to obey laws.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — in control
  2. fall — the season
  3. fall — to drop
  4. can — a tin
  5. cold — an illness
  6. cold — not warm
  7. spring — a coil
  8. charge — a price
  9. kick — with a leg
  10. spring — of water
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. kick — in football
  13. bound — certain
  14. can — a tin
  15. charge — electricity
  16. kick — a thrill
  17. fall — to drop
  18. fan — to cool the air
  19. spring — the season
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. can — to be able to
  22. cold — the Cold War
  23. bound — tied together
  24. bound — obliged

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