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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: lean · charge · bat · file · root · last · lash · band

  1. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  2. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  3. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  4. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  5. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  6. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  7. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  8. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  9. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  10. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  11. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  12. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  13. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  14. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  15. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  16. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  17. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  18. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  19. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  20. The tickets are free of ________________.
  21. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  22. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  23. False peace will not ________________.
  24. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — for baseball
  2. lean — thin
  3. band — a ring
  4. lean — to bend
  5. lash — to lash out
  6. last — finally
  7. bat — the animal
  8. lash — a whip stroke
  9. file — a tool
  10. band — a music group
  11. lash — an eyelash
  12. root — of a plant
  13. lean — to rest against
  14. charge — electricity
  15. charge — in control
  16. last — final
  17. band — a rubber band
  18. bat — in an idiom
  19. root — of a word
  20. charge — a price
  21. root — the cause
  22. file — a line of people
  23. last — to go on
  24. file — a document

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