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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: chair · charge · face · swing · patient · capital

  1. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  2. David sat on the ________________.
  3. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  4. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  5. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  6. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  7. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  8. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  9. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  10. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  11. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  12. The tickets are free of ________________.
  13. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  14. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  15. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  16. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  17. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  18. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — electricity
  2. swing — to play on
  3. capital — a city
  4. capital — a big letter
  5. capital — money
  6. swing — music
  7. charge — in control
  8. face — to point toward
  9. chair — a leader
  10. swing — in golf
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. charge — a price
  13. chair — to sit on
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. face — part of the head
  16. patient — calm and waiting
  17. chair — a professorship
  18. face — to confront

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