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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: rock · charge · pitcher · mate · band · capital · object · content

  1. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  2. He is an ace ________________.
  3. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  4. Have you found your soul ________________?
  5. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  6. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  7. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  8. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  9. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  10. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  11. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  12. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  13. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  14. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  15. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  16. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  17. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  18. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  19. The tickets are free of ________________.
  20. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  21. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  22. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  23. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  24. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.

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

Answer key

  1. content — the amount
  2. pitcher — in baseball
  3. object — a thing
  4. mate — a partner
  5. mate — a friend
  6. rock — a stone
  7. capital — a big letter
  8. content — happy
  9. capital — money
  10. band — a ring
  11. mate — to breed
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. object — an aim
  14. rock — music
  15. content — videos and posts
  16. object — to protest
  17. band — a music group
  18. charge — in control
  19. charge — a price
  20. rock — to move gently
  21. band — a rubber band
  22. capital — a city
  23. charge — electricity
  24. pitcher — a jug

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