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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: ball · kid · roll · pass · fall · shower · charge · calf

  1. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  2. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  3. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  4. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  5. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  6. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  7. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  8. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  9. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  10. The King held a masked ________________.
  11. We're on a ________________ here.
  12. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  13. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  14. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  15. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  16. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  17. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  18. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  19. The tickets are free of ________________.
  20. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  21. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  22. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  23. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  24. We took cover from the thunder ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. roll — a cake
  2. charge — electricity
  3. roll — a list
  4. fall — the season
  5. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  6. charge — in control
  7. fall — to drop
  8. calf — a young animal
  9. ball — a great time
  10. ball — a dance
  11. roll — on a roll
  12. kid — to tease
  13. pass — a permit
  14. fall — to drop
  15. pass — to succeed
  16. calf — of the leg
  17. pass — to spend time
  18. calf — a young animal
  19. charge — a price
  20. shower — to wash
  21. ball — a round shape
  22. shower — a meteor shower
  23. kid — child
  24. shower — rain

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