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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: calf · lean · leaves · spell · clip · chest · shower · charge

  1. How do you ________________ your surname?
  2. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  3. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  4. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  5. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  6. The tickets are free of ________________.
  7. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  8. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  9. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  10. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  11. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  12. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  13. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  14. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  15. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  16. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  17. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  18. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  19. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  20. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  21. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  22. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  23. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  24. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — letters
  2. leaves — to go away
  3. spell — magic
  4. clip — for paper
  5. calf — a young animal
  6. charge — a price
  7. shower — a meteor shower
  8. lean — to bend
  9. charge — in control
  10. chest — of your body
  11. calf — a young animal
  12. lean — to rest against
  13. chest — of your body
  14. lean — thin
  15. leaves — of a tree
  16. charge — electricity
  17. clip — a video
  18. calf — of the leg
  19. chest — a box
  20. spell — a short time
  21. shower — to wash
  22. clip — to cut
  23. shower — rain
  24. leaves — lets stay

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