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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: cap · charge · tear · date · bear · drill · wound · current

  1. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  2. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  3. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  4. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  5. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  6. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  7. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  8. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  9. The tickets are free of ________________.
  10. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  11. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  12. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  13. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  14. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  15. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  16. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  17. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  18. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  19. Have you settled on a ________________?
  20. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  21. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  22. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  23. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  24. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. cap — a hat
  3. date — the fruit
  4. drill — the tool
  5. wound — past of 'wind'
  6. current — of water
  7. tear — to rip
  8. bear — to put up with
  9. charge — a price
  10. bear — the animal
  11. cap — of ice
  12. current — electric
  13. drill — a practice
  14. charge — electricity
  15. date — on the calendar
  16. tear — from crying
  17. charge — in control
  18. drill — army training
  19. date — on the calendar
  20. cap — a lid
  21. wound — an injury
  22. bear — the animal
  23. tear — from crying
  24. current — happening now

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