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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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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: fork · stand · season · tear · charge · chest · straw · race

  1. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  2. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  3. Did you ________________ the meat?
  4. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  5. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  6. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  7. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  8. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  9. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  10. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  11. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  12. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  13. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  14. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  15. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  16. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  17. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  18. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  19. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  20. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  21. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  22. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  23. The tickets are free of ________________.
  24. I can't ________________ this cold.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — electricity
  2. tear — from crying
  3. season — to add flavour
  4. tear — to rip
  5. tear — from crying
  6. race — the arms race
  7. fork — in a road
  8. charge — in control
  9. chest — of your body
  10. straw — to clutch at straws
  11. season — of the year
  12. race — a contest
  13. season — in sport
  14. stand — for spectators
  15. straw — dry grass
  16. straw — a straw man
  17. chest — a box
  18. fork — a garden tool
  19. chest — of your body
  20. race — humankind
  21. fork — to eat with
  22. stand — on your feet
  23. charge — a price
  24. stand — to bear

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