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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 116 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: club · charge · wind · rush · land · lean · suit · stick

  1. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  2. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  3. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  4. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  5. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  6. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  7. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  8. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  9. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  10. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  11. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  12. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  13. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  14. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  15. When will it ________________ you to start?
  16. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  17. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  18. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  19. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  20. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  21. When are we going to ________________?
  22. The tickets are free of ________________.
  23. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  24. That must've been a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — hurry
  2. stick — a piece of wood
  3. club — for golf
  4. land — a country
  5. wind — moving air
  6. suit — in cards
  7. lean — to bend
  8. charge — electricity
  9. club — for dancing
  10. rush — to hurry
  11. land — ground
  12. lean — thin
  13. stick — to attach or keep to
  14. lean — to rest against
  15. suit — to fit
  16. club — a group
  17. charge — in control
  18. wind — to turn a key
  19. stick — a piece of wood
  20. wind — moving air
  21. land — to come down
  22. charge — a price
  23. suit — clothes
  24. rush — a thrill

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