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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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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: charge · cell · fall · band · patient · land · toast · face

  1. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  2. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  3. He was locked up in a ________________.
  4. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  5. The tickets are free of ________________.
  6. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  7. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  8. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  9. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  10. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  11. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  12. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  13. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  14. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  15. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  16. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  17. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  18. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  19. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  20. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  21. When are we going to ________________?
  22. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  23. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  24. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — calm and waiting
  2. fall — the season
  3. cell — in a prison
  4. band — a ring
  5. charge — a price
  6. face — part of the head
  7. charge — in control
  8. land — ground
  9. toast — a drink to someone
  10. charge — electricity
  11. toast — bread
  12. band — a music group
  13. cell — a phone
  14. cell — in biology
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. face — to point toward
  17. face — to confront
  18. fall — to drop
  19. patient — a sick person
  20. fall — to drop
  21. land — to come down
  22. band — a rubber band
  23. land — a country
  24. toast — the most admired

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