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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: snap · charge · capital · track · prune · bay · wound · bat

  1. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  2. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  3. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  6. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  7. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  8. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  9. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  10. My mare is ________________ in color.
  11. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  12. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  13. The tickets are free of ________________.
  14. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  15. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  16. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  17. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  18. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  19. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  20. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  21. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  22. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  23. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  24. This looks like a gunshot ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a big letter
  2. prune — to trim
  3. prune — the fruit
  4. capital — money
  5. bay — a part of the sea
  6. wound — past of 'wind'
  7. track — to keep track
  8. snap — to speak sharply
  9. snap — to click
  10. bay — a horse colour
  11. bat — for baseball
  12. charge — in control
  13. charge — a price
  14. bat — in an idiom
  15. wound — an injury
  16. track — a path
  17. snap — to snap out of it
  18. charge — electricity
  19. bat — the animal
  20. capital — a city
  21. track — a song
  22. bay — to keep at bay
  23. prune — to trim
  24. wound — an injury

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