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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: kid · charge · stem · capital · mate · mark · trunk · stock

  1. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  2. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  3. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  4. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  5. The ________________ market has crashed.
  6. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  7. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  8. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  9. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  10. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  11. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  12. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  13. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  14. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  15. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  16. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  17. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  18. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  19. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  20. Have you found your soul ________________?
  21. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  22. The tickets are free of ________________.
  23. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  24. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a city
  2. stem — of a plant
  3. charge — in control
  4. stem — to come from
  5. stock — shares
  6. trunk — of an elephant
  7. stock — a soup base
  8. mate — to breed
  9. kid — to tease
  10. charge — electricity
  11. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  12. stem — a stem cell
  13. mark — to pay attention
  14. trunk — of a tree
  15. mark — a trace
  16. mark — a grade
  17. capital — a big letter
  18. capital — money
  19. mate — a friend
  20. mate — a partner
  21. stock — goods
  22. charge — a price
  23. trunk — of a car
  24. kid — child

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