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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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  2. The tickets are free of ________________.
  3. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  4. It's one o'clock ________________.
  5. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  6. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  7. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  8. When are we going to ________________?
  9. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  10. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  11. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  12. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  13. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  14. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  15. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  16. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  17. He is an ace ________________.
  18. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  19. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  20. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  21. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  22. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  23. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  24. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — electricity
  2. charge — a price
  3. branch — a division
  4. sharp — exactly
  5. calf — of the leg
  6. capital — a city
  7. leaves — to go away
  8. land — to come down
  9. sharp — with an edge
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. sharp — clever
  12. leaves — of a tree
  13. capital — money
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. branch — of a tree
  16. calf — a young animal
  17. pitcher — in baseball
  18. land — ground
  19. capital — a big letter
  20. branch — of a bank
  21. leaves — lets stay
  22. land — a country
  23. calf — a young animal
  24. charge — in control

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