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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: chest · charge · craft · ruler · season · last · bear · ground

  1. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  2. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  3. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  4. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  5. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  6. The tickets are free of ________________.
  7. Did you ________________ the meat?
  8. There's no middle ________________.
  9. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  10. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  11. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  12. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  13. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  14. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  15. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  16. False peace will not ________________.
  17. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  18. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  19. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  20. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  21. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  22. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  23. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  24. Add some ________________ pepper to it.

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

Answer key

  1. last — final
  2. bear — to put up with
  3. bear — the animal
  4. charge — electricity
  5. last — finally
  6. charge — a price
  7. season — to add flavour
  8. ground — a position
  9. bear — the animal
  10. craft — a skill
  11. chest — of your body
  12. season — of the year
  13. ruler — for measuring
  14. ruler — for measuring
  15. season — in sport
  16. last — to go on
  17. chest — of your body
  18. craft — a handicraft
  19. chest — a box
  20. craft — boats
  21. ruler — a monarch
  22. charge — in control
  23. ground — the earth
  24. ground — crushed

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