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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: cap · capital · calf · charge · stem · perch · land · firm

  1. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  2. The tickets are free of ________________.
  3. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  4. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  5. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  6. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  7. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  8. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  9. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  10. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  11. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  12. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  13. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  14. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  15. When are we going to ________________?
  16. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  17. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  18. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  19. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  20. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  21. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  22. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  23. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  24. Beijing is the ________________ of China.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — money
  2. charge — a price
  3. firm — steady
  4. stem — to come from
  5. charge — electricity
  6. capital — a big letter
  7. stem — a stem cell
  8. calf — a young animal
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. cap — of ice
  11. calf — a young animal
  12. charge — in control
  13. stem — of a plant
  14. land — ground
  15. land — to come down
  16. firm — decided
  17. calf — of the leg
  18. cap — a hat
  19. cap — a lid
  20. perch — for a bird
  21. firm — a company
  22. perch — the fish
  23. land — a country
  24. capital — a city

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