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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 120 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: charge · foot · wake · lash · wave · chest · wound · field

  1. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  2. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  3. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  4. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  5. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  6. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  7. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  8. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  9. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  10. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  11. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  12. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  13. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  14. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  15. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  16. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  17. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  18. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  19. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  20. The tickets are free of ________________.
  21. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  22. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  23. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  24. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — electricity
  2. wave — with your hand
  3. wound — an injury
  4. wake — before a funeral
  5. lash — to lash out
  6. lash — an eyelash
  7. field — farmland
  8. lash — a whip stroke
  9. field — for sport
  10. chest — of your body
  11. foot — part of the body
  12. chest — of your body
  13. wave — of the sea
  14. foot — a measure
  15. wake — a trail
  16. wound — past of 'wind'
  17. chest — a box
  18. wave — a sudden rise
  19. wound — an injury
  20. charge — a price
  21. field — a subject
  22. wake — to stop sleeping
  23. foot — the bottom
  24. charge — in control

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