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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 120 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: file · root · court · bore · charge · cold · hand · ground

  1. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  2. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  3. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  4. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  5. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  6. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  7. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  8. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  9. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  10. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  11. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  12. The tickets are free of ________________.
  13. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  14. There's no middle ________________.
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  17. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  18. The water is too ________________.
  19. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  20. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  21. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  22. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  23. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  24. The ball is in your ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of law
  2. ground — crushed
  3. cold — the Cold War
  4. bore — to drill
  5. file — a line of people
  6. root — of a plant
  7. root — the cause
  8. hand — in cards
  9. bore — gave birth
  10. root — of a word
  11. ground — the earth
  12. charge — a price
  13. file — a tool
  14. ground — a position
  15. cold — an illness
  16. court — of a king
  17. hand — help
  18. cold — not warm
  19. hand — part of the body
  20. charge — in control
  21. charge — electricity
  22. file — a document
  23. bore — to tire
  24. court — for sport

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