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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 120 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: hand · charge · cue · cap · foot · spring · capital · stand

  1. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  2. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  3. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  4. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  5. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  6. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  7. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  8. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  9. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  10. The tickets are free of ________________.
  11. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  12. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  13. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  14. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  15. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  16. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  17. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  18. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  19. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  20. I can't ________________ this cold.
  21. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  22. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  23. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  24. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — electricity
  2. cue — a signal
  3. capital — a big letter
  4. foot — the bottom
  5. cue — for pool
  6. hand — part of the body
  7. stand — on your feet
  8. cap — a hat
  9. cap — a lid
  10. charge — a price
  11. cap — of ice
  12. hand — in cards
  13. spring — the season
  14. capital — money
  15. spring — a coil
  16. foot — part of the body
  17. capital — a city
  18. cue — a hint
  19. stand — for spectators
  20. stand — to bear
  21. charge — in control
  22. foot — a measure
  23. hand — help
  24. spring — of water

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