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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: cold · root · mouse · pitcher · stock · drill · charge · band

  1. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  2. The tickets are free of ________________.
  3. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  4. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  5. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  6. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  7. He is an ace ________________.
  8. The water is too ________________.
  9. The ________________ market has crashed.
  10. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  11. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  12. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  13. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  14. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  15. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  16. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  17. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  18. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  19. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  20. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  21. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  22. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  23. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  24. Where can I ________________ my mobile?

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

Answer key

  1. drill — the tool
  2. charge — a price
  3. root — the cause
  4. charge — in control
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. pitcher — in baseball
  8. cold — not warm
  9. stock — shares
  10. band — a ring
  11. drill — army training
  12. mouse — the animal
  13. cold — an illness
  14. root — of a plant
  15. band — a rubber band
  16. stock — goods
  17. mouse — for a computer
  18. band — a music group
  19. mouse — the animal
  20. cold — the Cold War
  21. stock — a soup base
  22. root — of a word
  23. drill — a practice
  24. charge — electricity

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