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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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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: kid · file · clip · bore · chest · foot · stem · charge

  1. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  2. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  3. The tickets are free of ________________.
  4. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  5. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  6. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  7. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  8. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  9. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  10. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  11. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  12. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  13. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  14. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  15. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  16. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  17. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  18. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  19. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  20. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  21. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  22. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  23. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  24. Where can I ________________ my mobile?

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

Answer key

  1. foot — a measure
  2. charge — in control
  3. charge — a price
  4. bore — gave birth
  5. chest — of your body
  6. chest — of your body
  7. bore — to drill
  8. stem — to come from
  9. file — a line of people
  10. foot — part of the body
  11. stem — a stem cell
  12. file — a tool
  13. kid — to tease
  14. file — a document
  15. clip — for paper
  16. chest — a box
  17. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  18. clip — a video
  19. bore — to tire
  20. stem — of a plant
  21. clip — to cut
  22. kid — child
  23. foot — the bottom
  24. charge — electricity

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