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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: tear · coach · fall · mug · rash · charge · chip · wake

  1. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  2. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  3. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  4. The tickets are free of ________________.
  5. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  6. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  7. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  8. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  9. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  10. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  11. Don't do anything ________________.
  12. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  13. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  14. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  15. Have you met the new head ________________?
  16. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  17. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  18. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  19. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  20. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  21. Where did you ________________ them?
  22. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  23. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  24. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. fall — the season
  3. tear — from crying
  4. charge — a price
  5. chip — to eat
  6. charge — electricity
  7. tear — to rip
  8. charge — in control
  9. rash — on the skin
  10. mug — a cup
  11. rash — hasty
  12. wake — a trail
  13. mug — a face
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. fall — to drop
  17. wake — to stop sleeping
  18. chip — in a computer
  19. coach — pulled by horses
  20. rash — a series
  21. mug — to rob
  22. chip — for betting
  23. tear — from crying
  24. wake — before a funeral

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