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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: capital · racket · roll · tear · bark · present · charge · leaves

  1. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  2. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  3. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  4. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  5. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  6. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  7. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  8. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  9. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  10. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  11. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  12. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  13. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  16. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  17. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  18. We're on a ________________ here.
  19. The tickets are free of ________________.
  20. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  21. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  22. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  23. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  24. The ________________ change colour in autumn.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — to shout
  2. charge — in control
  3. leaves — lets stay
  4. charge — electricity
  5. racket — for tennis
  6. tear — from crying
  7. present — a gift
  8. present — the time now
  9. tear — from crying
  10. capital — money
  11. roll — a cake
  12. leaves — to go away
  13. racket — a loud noise
  14. capital — a city
  15. tear — to rip
  16. bark — of a tree
  17. capital — a big letter
  18. roll — on a roll
  19. charge — a price
  20. racket — for tennis
  21. bark — a dog's sound
  22. present — there
  23. roll — a list
  24. leaves — of a tree

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