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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 120 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: fall · charge · hand · bark · bore · scale · file · fan

  1. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  2. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  3. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  4. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  5. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  6. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  7. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  8. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  9. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  10. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  11. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  12. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  13. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  14. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  15. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  16. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  17. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  18. The tickets are free of ________________.
  19. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  20. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  21. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  22. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  23. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  24. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. hand — help
  3. bark — to shout
  4. fall — to drop
  5. charge — electricity
  6. scale — for weighing
  7. bore — gave birth
  8. bark — a dog's sound
  9. charge — in control
  10. bore — to drill
  11. scale — in music
  12. fall — the season
  13. fan — to cool the air
  14. bark — of a tree
  15. scale — size or range
  16. bore — to tire
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. charge — a price
  19. hand — part of the body
  20. file — a line of people
  21. file — a document
  22. hand — in cards
  23. file — a tool
  24. fall — to drop

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