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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: content · bark · trunk · leaves · land · charge · shower · racket

  1. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  2. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  3. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  4. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  5. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  6. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  7. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  8. The tickets are free of ________________.
  9. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  10. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  11. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  12. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  13. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  14. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  15. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  16. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  17. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  18. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  19. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  20. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  21. When are we going to ________________?
  22. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  23. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  24. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. charge — electricity
  3. bark — to shout
  4. racket — for tennis
  5. shower — to wash
  6. content — the amount
  7. leaves — to go away
  8. charge — a price
  9. land — a country
  10. bark — of a tree
  11. leaves — of a tree
  12. shower — rain
  13. trunk — of an elephant
  14. trunk — of a tree
  15. land — ground
  16. content — videos and posts
  17. bark — a dog's sound
  18. leaves — lets stay
  19. charge — in control
  20. trunk — of a car
  21. land — to come down
  22. content — happy
  23. shower — a meteor shower
  24. racket — a loud noise

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