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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: racket · lean · roll · file · charge · fall · kid · hand

  1. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  2. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  3. We're on a ________________ here.
  4. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  5. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  6. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  7. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  8. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  9. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  10. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  11. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  12. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  13. The tickets are free of ________________.
  14. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  15. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  16. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  17. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  18. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  19. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  20. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  21. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  22. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  23. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  24. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. roll — a cake
  2. fall — to drop
  3. roll — on a roll
  4. fall — the season
  5. file — a document
  6. file — a line of people
  7. racket — for tennis
  8. charge — electricity
  9. roll — a list
  10. hand — help
  11. hand — part of the body
  12. file — a tool
  13. charge — a price
  14. lean — to rest against
  15. fall — to drop
  16. kid — to tease
  17. lean — thin
  18. charge — in control
  19. kid — child
  20. hand — in cards
  21. racket — for tennis
  22. lean — to bend
  23. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  24. racket — a loud noise

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