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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: charge · mate · rush · shower · scale · land · capital · stem

  1. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  2. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  3. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  4. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  5. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  6. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  7. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  8. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  9. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  10. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  11. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  12. Have you found your soul ________________?
  13. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  14. When are we going to ________________?
  15. The tickets are free of ________________.
  16. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  17. That must've been a ________________.
  18. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  19. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  20. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  21. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  22. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  23. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  24. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — a stem cell
  2. scale — size or range
  3. mate — a friend
  4. shower — rain
  5. capital — a big letter
  6. rush — to hurry
  7. stem — of a plant
  8. scale — for weighing
  9. mate — to breed
  10. shower — to wash
  11. scale — in music
  12. mate — a partner
  13. land — ground
  14. land — to come down
  15. charge — a price
  16. charge — electricity
  17. rush — a thrill
  18. rush — hurry
  19. charge — in control
  20. capital — a city
  21. capital — money
  22. shower — a meteor shower
  23. stem — to come from
  24. land — a country

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