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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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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: capital · bay · present · band · charge · calf · cap · snap

  1. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  2. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  3. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  4. My mare is ________________ in color.
  5. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  6. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  7. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  8. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  9. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  10. The tickets are free of ________________.
  11. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  12. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  13. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  14. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  15. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  16. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  17. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  18. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  19. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  20. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  21. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  22. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  23. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  24. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — electricity
  2. cap — of ice
  3. calf — a young animal
  4. bay — a horse colour
  5. snap — to click
  6. band — a ring
  7. charge — in control
  8. snap — to speak sharply
  9. bay — to keep at bay
  10. charge — a price
  11. cap — a hat
  12. present — there
  13. snap — to snap out of it
  14. cap — a lid
  15. band — a rubber band
  16. capital — money
  17. present — the time now
  18. bay — a part of the sea
  19. present — a gift
  20. capital — a big letter
  21. calf — of the leg
  22. capital — a city
  23. band — a music group
  24. calf — a young animal

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