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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: mate · plane · charge · stick · net · spell · hand · shower

  1. Have you found your soul ________________?
  2. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  3. The ________________ took off on time.
  4. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  5. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  6. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  7. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  8. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  9. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  10. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  11. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  12. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  13. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  14. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  15. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  16. The tickets are free of ________________.
  17. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  18. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  19. How do you ________________ your surname?
  20. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  21. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  22. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  23. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  24. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a partner
  2. mate — a friend
  3. plane — an aircraft
  4. stick — a piece of wood
  5. net — for catching
  6. plane — a tool
  7. hand — part of the body
  8. net — after costs
  9. hand — help
  10. stick — a piece of wood
  11. shower — to wash
  12. spell — magic
  13. charge — electricity
  14. mate — to breed
  15. plane — in geometry
  16. charge — a price
  17. hand — in cards
  18. shower — rain
  19. spell — letters
  20. stick — to attach or keep to
  21. net — in sport
  22. shower — a meteor shower
  23. charge — in control
  24. spell — a short time

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