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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
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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: spell · file · ground · charge · pitcher · clip · bore · cell

  1. He is an ace ________________.
  2. How do you ________________ your surname?
  3. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  4. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  5. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  6. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  7. The tickets are free of ________________.
  8. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  9. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  10. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  11. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  12. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  13. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  14. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  15. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  16. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  17. He was locked up in a ________________.
  18. There's no middle ________________.
  19. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  20. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  21. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  22. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  23. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  24. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — in baseball
  2. spell — letters
  3. bore — to drill
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. file — a document
  6. bore — gave birth
  7. charge — a price
  8. file — a tool
  9. clip — to cut
  10. spell — a short time
  11. cell — a phone
  12. ground — the earth
  13. ground — crushed
  14. charge — electricity
  15. charge — in control
  16. clip — for paper
  17. cell — in a prison
  18. ground — a position
  19. bore — to tire
  20. file — a line of people
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. cell — in biology
  23. spell — magic
  24. clip — a video

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