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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 · mate · chest · foot · field · bulb · kick · face

  1. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  2. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  3. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  4. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  5. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  6. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  7. I've got to change the light ________________.
  8. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  9. Have you found your soul ________________?
  10. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  11. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  12. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  13. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  14. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  15. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  16. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  17. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  18. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  19. The tickets are free of ________________.
  20. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  21. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  22. The light ________________ burned out.
  23. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  24. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. field — for sport
  3. face — to point toward
  4. chest — of your body
  5. foot — a measure
  6. kick — with a leg
  7. bulb — for light
  8. charge — electricity
  9. mate — a partner
  10. foot — the bottom
  11. bulb — of a plant
  12. kick — in football
  13. face — to confront
  14. chest — a box
  15. chest — of your body
  16. foot — part of the body
  17. mate — a friend
  18. field — a subject
  19. charge — a price
  20. kick — a thrill
  21. mate — to breed
  22. bulb — for light
  23. face — part of the head
  24. charge — in control

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