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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 120 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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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: lash · pound · kid · key · patient · mine · charge · content

  1. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  2. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  3. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  4. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  5. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  6. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  7. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  8. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  9. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  10. The tickets are free of ________________.
  11. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  12. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  13. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  14. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  15. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  16. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  17. This piece is in a major ________________.
  18. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  19. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  20. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  21. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  22. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  23. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  24. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — to tease
  2. charge — in control
  3. mine — an explosive
  4. content — videos and posts
  5. charge — electricity
  6. pound — for dogs
  7. content — happy
  8. content — the amount
  9. mine — belonging to me
  10. charge — a price
  11. lash — to lash out
  12. pound — to hit hard
  13. pound — a weight
  14. lash — an eyelash
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. lash — a whip stroke
  17. key — in music
  18. key — for a lock
  19. kid — child
  20. patient — calm and waiting
  21. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  22. key — the most important part
  23. mine — for digging
  24. patient — a sick person

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