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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 116 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: shower · charge · tube · lie · wake · hand · trunk · mate

  1. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  2. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  3. Have you found your soul ________________?
  4. The tickets are free of ________________.
  5. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  6. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  7. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  8. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  9. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  10. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  11. I'll be taking the ________________.
  12. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  13. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  14. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  15. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  16. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  17. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  18. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  19. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  20. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  21. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  22. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  23. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  24. Do you need a ________________ with that?

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

Answer key

  1. charge — electricity
  2. lie — an untruth
  3. mate — a partner
  4. charge — a price
  5. wake — a trail
  6. trunk — of a tree
  7. tube — a container
  8. trunk — of a car
  9. tube — in a tire
  10. wake — before a funeral
  11. tube — the underground
  12. hand — in cards
  13. hand — part of the body
  14. lie — to recline
  15. shower — a meteor shower
  16. mate — to breed
  17. wake — to stop sleeping
  18. shower — rain
  19. trunk — of an elephant
  20. charge — in control
  21. mate — a friend
  22. shower — to wash
  23. lie — an untruth
  24. hand — help

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