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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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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: pit · rush · lean · field · charge · shower · pound · calf

  1. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  2. The tickets are free of ________________.
  3. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  4. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  5. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  6. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  7. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  8. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  9. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  10. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  11. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  12. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  13. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  14. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  15. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  16. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  17. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  18. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  19. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  20. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  21. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  22. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  23. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  24. That must've been a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — thin
  2. charge — a price
  3. field — a subject
  4. calf — a young animal
  5. rush — to hurry
  6. field — farmland
  7. charge — in control
  8. lean — to bend
  9. shower — to wash
  10. charge — electricity
  11. field — for sport
  12. rush — hurry
  13. pit — a hole
  14. pit — a fruit stone
  15. calf — of the leg
  16. lean — to rest against
  17. pound — to hit hard
  18. pound — for dogs
  19. pound — a weight
  20. calf — a young animal
  21. shower — rain
  22. pit — in a race
  23. shower — a meteor shower
  24. rush — a thrill

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