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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: charge · fan · clip · file · craft · straw · tear · toast

  1. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  2. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  3. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  4. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  5. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  6. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  7. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  8. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  9. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  10. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  11. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  12. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  13. The tickets are free of ________________.
  14. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  15. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  16. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  17. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  18. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  19. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  20. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  21. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  22. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  23. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  24. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — in control
  2. toast — the most admired
  3. clip — for paper
  4. tear — from crying
  5. charge — electricity
  6. straw — dry grass
  7. straw — to clutch at straws
  8. craft — boats
  9. tear — from crying
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. tear — to rip
  12. clip — to cut
  13. charge — a price
  14. file — a tool
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. fan — to cool the air
  17. file — a document
  18. straw — a straw man
  19. clip — a video
  20. toast — bread
  21. file — a line of people
  22. craft — a handicraft
  23. toast — a drink to someone
  24. craft — a skill

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