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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: charge · court · bear · file · land · wake · fall · rest

  1. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  2. When are we going to ________________?
  3. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  4. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  5. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  6. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  7. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  8. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  9. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  10. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  11. The tickets are free of ________________.
  12. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  13. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  14. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  15. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  16. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  17. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  18. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  19. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  20. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  21. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  22. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  23. The ball is in your ________________.
  24. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — a break
  2. land — to come down
  3. fall — to drop
  4. bear — the animal
  5. rest — what's left
  6. fall — the season
  7. wake — before a funeral
  8. wake — to stop sleeping
  9. land — ground
  10. fall — to drop
  11. charge — a price
  12. charge — electricity
  13. land — a country
  14. file — a document
  15. wake — a trail
  16. bear — to put up with
  17. file — a tool
  18. court — of a king
  19. rest — what's left
  20. court — of law
  21. charge — in control
  22. file — a line of people
  23. court — for sport
  24. bear — the animal

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