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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: hand · saw · land · charge · rest · snap · current · field

  1. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  2. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  3. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  4. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  5. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  6. When are we going to ________________?
  7. The tickets are free of ________________.
  8. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  9. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  10. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  11. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  12. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  13. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  14. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  15. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  16. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  17. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  18. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  19. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  20. He works in a ________________ mill.
  21. She's very handy with a ________________.
  22. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  23. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  24. I would like to have a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — what's left
  2. current — of water
  3. current — happening now
  4. saw — past of 'see'
  5. field — for sport
  6. land — to come down
  7. charge — a price
  8. charge — electricity
  9. snap — to speak sharply
  10. field — farmland
  11. current — electric
  12. snap — to snap out of it
  13. rest — what's left
  14. snap — to click
  15. hand — in cards
  16. charge — in control
  17. land — a country
  18. hand — part of the body
  19. field — a subject
  20. saw — the tool
  21. saw — the tool
  22. hand — help
  23. land — ground
  24. rest — a break

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