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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 · field · shower · band · spring · prune · snap · craft

  1. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  2. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  3. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  4. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  5. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  6. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  7. The tickets are free of ________________.
  8. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  9. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  10. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  11. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  12. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  13. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  14. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  15. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  16. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  17. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  18. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  19. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  20. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  21. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  22. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  23. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  24. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — of water
  2. craft — a skill
  3. charge — in control
  4. snap — to snap out of it
  5. band — a ring
  6. band — a music group
  7. charge — a price
  8. shower — rain
  9. charge — electricity
  10. shower — to wash
  11. craft — a handicraft
  12. snap — to speak sharply
  13. field — for sport
  14. spring — a coil
  15. spring — the season
  16. field — a subject
  17. snap — to click
  18. prune — to trim
  19. band — a rubber band
  20. prune — to trim
  21. craft — boats
  22. shower — a meteor shower
  23. prune — the fruit
  24. field — farmland

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