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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: clip · charge · spell · capital · kid · lean · board · cap

  1. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  2. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  3. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  4. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  5. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  8. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  9. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  10. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  11. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  12. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  13. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  14. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  15. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  16. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  17. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  18. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  19. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  20. How do you ________________ your surname?
  21. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  22. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  23. The tickets are free of ________________.
  24. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a city
  2. clip — to cut
  3. kid — to tease
  4. capital — a big letter
  5. charge — in control
  6. clip — for paper
  7. charge — electricity
  8. kid — child
  9. spell — magic
  10. spell — a short time
  11. cap — of ice
  12. board — a committee
  13. cap — a lid
  14. lean — thin
  15. board — to get on
  16. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  17. lean — to rest against
  18. clip — a video
  19. lean — to bend
  20. spell — letters
  21. capital — money
  22. board — a flat piece
  23. charge — a price
  24. cap — a hat

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