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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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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: field · toast · wind · file · bore · race · charge · foot

  1. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  2. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  3. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  4. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  5. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  6. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  7. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  8. The tickets are free of ________________.
  9. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  10. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  11. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  12. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  13. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  14. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  15. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  16. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  17. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  18. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  19. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  20. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  21. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  22. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  23. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  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. charge — electricity
  2. bore — to drill
  3. bore — to tire
  4. field — farmland
  5. foot — the bottom
  6. toast — the most admired
  7. field — for sport
  8. charge — a price
  9. bore — gave birth
  10. wind — moving air
  11. toast — a drink to someone
  12. charge — in control
  13. toast — bread
  14. wind — moving air
  15. file — a tool
  16. foot — a measure
  17. file — a line of people
  18. race — the arms race
  19. race — humankind
  20. foot — part of the body
  21. field — a subject
  22. race — a contest
  23. wind — to turn a key
  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