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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: march · bore · capital · tear · last · charge

  1. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  2. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  3. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  4. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  5. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  6. The tickets are free of ________________.
  7. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  8. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  9. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  10. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  11. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  12. False peace will not ________________.
  13. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  14. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  15. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  16. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  17. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  18. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. last — finally
  3. capital — money
  4. tear — from crying
  5. capital — a big letter
  6. charge — a price
  7. charge — in control
  8. bore — to tire
  9. capital — a city
  10. tear — from crying
  11. charge — electricity
  12. last — to go on
  13. bore — gave birth
  14. tear — to rip
  15. march — the month
  16. bore — to drill
  17. march — music
  18. last — final

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