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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: fall · foot · stick · rash · charge · game · net · key

  1. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  2. Don't do anything ________________.
  3. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  4. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  5. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  6. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  7. That was a fun ________________.
  8. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  9. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  10. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  11. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  12. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  13. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  14. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  15. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  16. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  17. The tickets are free of ________________.
  18. This piece is in a major ________________.
  19. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  20. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  21. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  22. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  23. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  24. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — electricity
  2. rash — hasty
  3. fall — to drop
  4. foot — the bottom
  5. key — the most important part
  6. key — for a lock
  7. game — a match
  8. foot — a measure
  9. rash — on the skin
  10. fall — to drop
  11. charge — in control
  12. net — after costs
  13. net — in sport
  14. stick — to attach or keep to
  15. stick — a piece of wood
  16. game — wild animals
  17. charge — a price
  18. key — in music
  19. fall — the season
  20. stick — a piece of wood
  21. foot — part of the body
  22. game — a kind of play
  23. net — for catching
  24. rash — a series

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