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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: row · cell · hand · lie · charge · band · net · shower

  1. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  2. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  3. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  4. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  5. The tickets are free of ________________.
  6. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  7. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  8. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  9. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  10. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  11. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  12. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  13. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  14. He was locked up in a ________________.
  15. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  16. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  17. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  18. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  19. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  20. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  21. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  22. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  23. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  24. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.

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

Answer key

  1. net — in sport
  2. shower — rain
  3. charge — in control
  4. lie — to recline
  5. charge — a price
  6. hand — in cards
  7. shower — a meteor shower
  8. hand — part of the body
  9. cell — a phone
  10. band — a music group
  11. band — a rubber band
  12. net — for catching
  13. row — a line
  14. cell — in a prison
  15. row — to paddle
  16. band — a ring
  17. shower — to wash
  18. charge — electricity
  19. row — a quarrel
  20. lie — an untruth
  21. net — after costs
  22. cell — in biology
  23. hand — help
  24. lie — an untruth

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