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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
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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: track · tube · bat · content · charge · wound · row · mate

  1. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  2. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  3. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  4. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  5. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  6. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  7. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  8. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  9. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  10. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  11. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  12. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  13. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  14. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  15. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  16. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  17. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  18. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  19. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  20. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  21. Have you found your soul ________________?
  22. I'll be taking the ________________.
  23. The tickets are free of ________________.
  24. This looks like a gunshot ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. content — happy
  2. charge — electricity
  3. content — videos and posts
  4. tube — in a tire
  5. tube — a container
  6. mate — to breed
  7. track — a path
  8. bat — in an idiom
  9. track — a song
  10. wound — an injury
  11. mate — a friend
  12. bat — the animal
  13. row — to paddle
  14. bat — for baseball
  15. charge — in control
  16. row — a quarrel
  17. track — to keep track
  18. row — a line
  19. content — the amount
  20. wound — past of 'wind'
  21. mate — a partner
  22. tube — the underground
  23. charge — a price
  24. wound — an injury

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