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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: spring · cap · arm · wound · rest · last · rash · charge

  1. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  2. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  3. My father caught me by the ________________.
  4. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  5. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  6. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  7. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  8. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  9. The tickets are free of ________________.
  10. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  11. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  12. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  13. Don't do anything ________________.
  14. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  15. False peace will not ________________.
  16. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  17. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  18. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  19. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  20. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  21. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  22. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  23. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  24. I would like to have a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a lid
  2. wound — an injury
  3. arm — part of the body
  4. last — final
  5. rest — what's left
  6. rash — on the skin
  7. arm — part of the body
  8. spring — a coil
  9. charge — a price
  10. arm — a part of something
  11. charge — electricity
  12. cap — a hat
  13. rash — hasty
  14. wound — an injury
  15. last — to go on
  16. charge — in control
  17. rash — a series
  18. rest — what's left
  19. last — finally
  20. wound — past of 'wind'
  21. spring — of water
  22. spring — the season
  23. cap — of ice
  24. rest — a break

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