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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: shower · wound · net · charge · track · squash · mug · staff

  1. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  2. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  3. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  4. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  5. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  6. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  7. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  8. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  9. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  10. The tickets are free of ________________.
  11. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  12. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  13. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  14. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  15. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  16. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  17. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  18. Where did you ________________ them?
  19. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  20. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  21. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  22. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  23. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  24. This looks like a gunshot ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. charge — electricity
  3. staff — a stick
  4. net — in sport
  5. shower — rain
  6. mug — a face
  7. wound — an injury
  8. shower — to wash
  9. track — a path
  10. charge — a price
  11. track — a song
  12. track — to keep track
  13. squash — to crush
  14. staff — employees
  15. net — after costs
  16. net — for catching
  17. charge — in control
  18. mug — to rob
  19. mug — a cup
  20. squash — the vegetable
  21. squash — the sport
  22. wound — past of 'wind'
  23. shower — a meteor shower
  24. wound — an injury

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