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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: spring · nail · fall · trunk · charge · root · club · ball

  1. The tickets are free of ________________.
  2. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  3. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  4. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  5. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  6. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  7. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  8. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  9. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  10. The ________________ went through the wall.
  11. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  12. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  13. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  14. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  15. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  16. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  17. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  18. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  19. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  20. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  21. The King held a masked ________________.
  22. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  23. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  24. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — a price
  2. charge — electricity
  3. club — for dancing
  4. club — for golf
  5. fall — to drop
  6. spring — a coil
  7. root — of a word
  8. club — a group
  9. trunk — of a car
  10. nail — for a hammer
  11. fall — the season
  12. spring — of water
  13. spring — the season
  14. fall — to drop
  15. ball — a great time
  16. charge — in control
  17. trunk — of a tree
  18. ball — a round shape
  19. nail — for a hammer
  20. root — the cause
  21. ball — a dance
  22. nail — on a finger
  23. trunk — of an elephant
  24. root — of a plant

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