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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: wind · staff · charge · mine · rash · cold · cap · ground

  1. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  2. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  3. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  4. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  5. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  6. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  7. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  8. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  9. There's no middle ________________.
  10. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  11. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  12. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  13. Don't do anything ________________.
  14. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  15. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  16. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  17. The water is too ________________.
  18. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  19. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  20. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  21. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  22. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  23. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  24. The tickets are free of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. staff — employees
  3. mine — an explosive
  4. staff — a stick
  5. staff — employees
  6. mine — belonging to me
  7. wind — to turn a key
  8. cap — a lid
  9. ground — a position
  10. cap — a hat
  11. charge — electricity
  12. cold — the Cold War
  13. rash — hasty
  14. ground — crushed
  15. cap — of ice
  16. cold — an illness
  17. cold — not warm
  18. charge — in control
  19. wind — moving air
  20. mine — for digging
  21. ground — the earth
  22. rash — on the skin
  23. rash — a series
  24. charge — a price

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