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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 116 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 · bear · fall · band · game · trunk · branch · wind

  1. The tickets are free of ________________.
  2. That was a fun ________________.
  3. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  4. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  5. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  6. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  7. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  8. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  9. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  10. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  11. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  12. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  13. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  14. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  15. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  16. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  17. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  18. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  19. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  20. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  21. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  22. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  23. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  24. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — a price
  2. game — a match
  3. fall — to drop
  4. band — a music group
  5. bear — to put up with
  6. branch — a division
  7. charge — in control
  8. bear — the animal
  9. branch — of a tree
  10. trunk — of a car
  11. bear — the animal
  12. wind — to turn a key
  13. trunk — of an elephant
  14. fall — the season
  15. wind — moving air
  16. fall — to drop
  17. wind — moving air
  18. game — a kind of play
  19. game — wild animals
  20. branch — of a bank
  21. band — a ring
  22. band — a rubber band
  23. charge — electricity
  24. trunk — of a tree

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