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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 116 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: court · safe · capital · track · charge · stem · stock · season

  1. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  2. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  4. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  5. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  6. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  7. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  8. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  9. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  10. The tickets are free of ________________.
  11. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  12. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  13. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  14. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  15. Did you ________________ the meat?
  16. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  17. The ball is in your ________________.
  18. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  19. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  20. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  21. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  22. The ________________ market has crashed.
  23. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  24. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of a king
  2. capital — a big letter
  3. track — to keep track
  4. track — a path
  5. stock — goods
  6. safe — a strongbox
  7. season — in sport
  8. safe — out of danger
  9. track — a song
  10. charge — a price
  11. stock — a soup base
  12. court — of law
  13. capital — a city
  14. stem — of a plant
  15. season — to add flavour
  16. season — of the year
  17. court — for sport
  18. charge — in control
  19. capital — money
  20. stem — to come from
  21. charge — electricity
  22. stock — shares
  23. safe — out of danger
  24. stem — a stem cell

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