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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: charge · kid · leaves · wind · coach · mine · content · calf

  1. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  2. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  3. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  4. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  5. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  6. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  7. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  8. Have you met the new head ________________?
  9. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  10. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  11. The tickets are free of ________________.
  12. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  13. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  14. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  15. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  16. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  17. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  18. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  19. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  20. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  21. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  22. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  23. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  24. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — a trainer
  2. mine — belonging to me
  3. calf — a young animal
  4. charge — electricity
  5. calf — of the leg
  6. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  7. kid — child
  8. coach — a trainer
  9. mine — for digging
  10. charge — in control
  11. charge — a price
  12. coach — pulled by horses
  13. wind — moving air
  14. wind — moving air
  15. leaves — to go away
  16. mine — an explosive
  17. content — the amount
  18. content — happy
  19. content — videos and posts
  20. leaves — lets stay
  21. kid — to tease
  22. leaves — of a tree
  23. calf — a young animal
  24. wind — to turn a key

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