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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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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: patient · charge · land · bowl · lash · wake · snap · file

  1. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  2. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  3. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  4. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  5. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  6. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  7. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  8. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  9. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  10. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  11. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  12. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  13. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  14. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  15. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  16. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  17. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  18. When are we going to ________________?
  19. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  20. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  21. The tickets are free of ________________.
  22. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  23. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  24. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.

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

Answer key

  1. land — ground
  2. lash — a whip stroke
  3. patient — calm and waiting
  4. bowl — to roll
  5. wake — a trail
  6. bowl — a football final
  7. file — a document
  8. charge — in control
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. bowl — a dish
  11. wake — to stop sleeping
  12. charge — electricity
  13. file — a line of people
  14. lash — an eyelash
  15. file — a tool
  16. snap — to speak sharply
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. land — to come down
  19. land — a country
  20. snap — to click
  21. charge — a price
  22. snap — to snap out of it
  23. lash — to lash out
  24. wake — before a funeral

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