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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: land · charge · mine · deal · court · fall · net · plane

  1. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  2. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  3. When are we going to ________________?
  4. The ________________ took off on time.
  5. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  6. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  7. The ball is in your ________________.
  8. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  9. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  10. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  11. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  12. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  13. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  14. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  15. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  16. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  17. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  18. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  19. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  20. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  21. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  22. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  23. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  24. The tickets are free of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — electricity
  2. mine — belonging to me
  3. land — to come down
  4. plane — an aircraft
  5. net — for catching
  6. deal — a big deal
  7. court — for sport
  8. land — a country
  9. plane — a tool
  10. net — in sport
  11. mine — an explosive
  12. court — of a king
  13. deal — to handle
  14. land — ground
  15. court — of law
  16. deal — an agreement
  17. fall — to drop
  18. charge — in control
  19. fall — to drop
  20. fall — the season
  21. net — after costs
  22. plane — in geometry
  23. mine — for digging
  24. charge — a price

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