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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: bat · charge · sharp · drill · land · arm · leaves · rock

  1. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  2. My father caught me by the ________________.
  3. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  4. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  5. The tickets are free of ________________.
  6. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  7. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  8. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  9. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  10. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  11. It's one o'clock ________________.
  12. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  13. When are we going to ________________?
  14. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  15. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  16. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  17. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  18. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  19. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  20. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  21. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  22. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  23. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  24. He's quite ________________, isn't he?

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

Answer key

  1. charge — electricity
  2. arm — part of the body
  3. drill — army training
  4. rock — music
  5. charge — a price
  6. leaves — of a tree
  7. bat — the animal
  8. drill — a practice
  9. charge — in control
  10. rock — to move gently
  11. sharp — exactly
  12. drill — the tool
  13. land — to come down
  14. sharp — with an edge
  15. leaves — to go away
  16. rock — a stone
  17. land — a country
  18. bat — in an idiom
  19. leaves — lets stay
  20. bat — for baseball
  21. arm — a part of something
  22. land — ground
  23. arm — part of the body
  24. sharp — clever

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