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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: mate · mine · spring · ground · sharp · kick · branch · charge

  1. The tickets are free of ________________.
  2. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  3. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  4. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  5. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  6. Have you found your soul ________________?
  7. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  8. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  9. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  10. There's no middle ________________.
  11. It's one o'clock ________________.
  12. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  13. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  14. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  15. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  16. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  17. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  18. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  19. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  20. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  21. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  22. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  23. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  24. Add some ________________ pepper to it.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — a price
  2. branch — a division
  3. kick — in football
  4. mine — belonging to me
  5. kick — with a leg
  6. mate — a partner
  7. branch — of a tree
  8. mate — a friend
  9. ground — the earth
  10. ground — a position
  11. sharp — exactly
  12. spring — of water
  13. sharp — with an edge
  14. branch — of a bank
  15. spring — the season
  16. charge — electricity
  17. mine — an explosive
  18. kick — a thrill
  19. spring — a coil
  20. mine — for digging
  21. sharp — clever
  22. charge — in control
  23. mate — to breed
  24. ground — crushed

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