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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: wound · game · field · stem · fine · bowl · charge · shower

  1. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  2. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  3. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  4. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  5. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  6. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  7. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  8. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  9. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  10. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  11. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  12. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  13. The tickets are free of ________________.
  14. That was a fun ________________.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  17. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  18. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  19. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  20. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  21. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  22. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  23. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  24. He's taking a ________________ right now.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. fine — a penalty
  3. stem — of a plant
  4. shower — rain
  5. charge — in control
  6. shower — a meteor shower
  7. game — wild animals
  8. bowl — a dish
  9. charge — electricity
  10. field — for sport
  11. fine — high quality
  12. game — a kind of play
  13. charge — a price
  14. game — a match
  15. field — farmland
  16. field — a subject
  17. bowl — to roll
  18. fine — all right
  19. bowl — a football final
  20. stem — to come from
  21. wound — an injury
  22. stem — a stem cell
  23. wound — past of 'wind'
  24. shower — to wash

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