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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: roll · squash · mouse · trunk · rash · charge · tear · kick

  1. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  2. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  3. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  4. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  5. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  6. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  7. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  8. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  9. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  10. The tickets are free of ________________.
  11. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  12. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  13. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  14. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  15. We're on a ________________ here.
  16. Don't do anything ________________.
  17. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  18. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  19. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  20. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  21. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  22. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  23. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  24. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a car
  2. charge — electricity
  3. rash — on the skin
  4. tear — to rip
  5. squash — to crush
  6. squash — the sport
  7. roll — a list
  8. trunk — of a tree
  9. charge — in control
  10. charge — a price
  11. kick — with a leg
  12. kick — a thrill
  13. mouse — the animal
  14. tear — from crying
  15. roll — on a roll
  16. rash — hasty
  17. kick — in football
  18. roll — a cake
  19. tear — from crying
  20. rash — a series
  21. squash — the vegetable
  22. mouse — for a computer
  23. trunk — of an elephant
  24. mouse — the animal

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