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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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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: mine · wind · hand · charge · stem · coach · dip · club

  1. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  2. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  3. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  4. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  5. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  6. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  7. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  8. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  9. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  10. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  11. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  12. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  13. Have you met the new head ________________?
  14. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  15. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  16. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  17. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  18. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  19. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  20. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  21. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  22. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  23. The tickets are free of ________________.
  24. She's sitting on a gold ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for golf
  2. dip — a sauce
  3. mine — belonging to me
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. wind — to turn a key
  6. coach — pulled by horses
  7. hand — in cards
  8. charge — electricity
  9. mine — an explosive
  10. wind — moving air
  11. stem — a stem cell
  12. hand — help
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. charge — in control
  15. dip — to dunk
  16. club — for dancing
  17. dip — to sink
  18. wind — moving air
  19. hand — part of the body
  20. club — a group
  21. stem — to come from
  22. stem — of a plant
  23. charge — a price
  24. mine — for digging

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