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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
468
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: rest · land · tube · kid · bore · charge · spell · cabinet

  1. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  2. How do you ________________ your surname?
  3. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  4. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  5. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  6. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  7. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  8. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  9. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  10. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  11. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  12. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  13. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  14. The tickets are free of ________________.
  15. When are we going to ________________?
  16. I'll be taking the ________________.
  17. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  18. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  19. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  20. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  21. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  22. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  23. What do you think of the new ________________?
  24. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — electricity
  2. spell — letters
  3. rest — what's left
  4. cabinet — ministers
  5. bore — to tire
  6. charge — in control
  7. tube — in a tire
  8. tube — a container
  9. land — a country
  10. bore — gave birth
  11. rest — a break
  12. rest — what's left
  13. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  14. charge — a price
  15. land — to come down
  16. tube — the underground
  17. spell — magic
  18. cabinet — a cupboard
  19. land — ground
  20. kid — child
  21. spell — a short time
  22. kid — to tease
  23. cabinet — ministers
  24. bore — to drill

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