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

Word bank: capital · stem · stick · court · chair · content

  1. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  2. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  4. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  5. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  6. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  7. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  8. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  9. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  10. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  11. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  12. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  13. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. The ball is in your ________________.
  16. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  17. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  18. Check the label for the sugar ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. content — happy
  2. capital — a big letter
  3. chair — to sit on
  4. content — videos and posts
  5. stem — a stem cell
  6. court — of law
  7. stick — to attach or keep to
  8. stem — to come from
  9. stick — a piece of wood
  10. stem — of a plant
  11. chair — a leader
  12. court — of a king
  13. stick — a piece of wood
  14. capital — a city
  15. court — for sport
  16. capital — money
  17. chair — a professorship
  18. content — the amount

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