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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: spell · bore · shower · charge · track · last · kid · mate

  1. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  2. How do you ________________ your surname?
  3. Have you found your soul ________________?
  4. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  5. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  6. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  7. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  8. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  9. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  10. The tickets are free of ________________.
  11. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  12. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  13. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  14. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  15. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  16. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  17. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  18. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  19. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  20. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  21. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  22. False peace will not ________________.
  23. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  24. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a song
  2. spell — letters
  3. mate — a partner
  4. shower — a meteor shower
  5. bore — gave birth
  6. charge — in control
  7. spell — a short time
  8. charge — electricity
  9. mate — a friend
  10. charge — a price
  11. shower — rain
  12. bore — to tire
  13. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  14. track — to keep track
  15. track — a path
  16. last — final
  17. spell — magic
  18. shower — to wash
  19. bore — to drill
  20. mate — to breed
  21. kid — child
  22. last — to go on
  23. last — finally
  24. kid — to tease

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