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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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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: straw · charge · arm · cell · trunk · stand · rule · capital

  1. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  2. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  4. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  5. The tickets are free of ________________.
  6. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  7. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  8. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  9. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  10. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  11. I can't ________________ this cold.
  12. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  13. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  14. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  15. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  16. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  17. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  18. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  19. He was locked up in a ________________.
  20. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  21. My father caught me by the ________________.
  22. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  23. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  24. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?

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

Answer key

  1. charge — in control
  2. capital — a big letter
  3. arm — a part of something
  4. capital — a city
  5. charge — a price
  6. arm — part of the body
  7. trunk — of a car
  8. stand — for spectators
  9. rule — a law
  10. stand — on your feet
  11. stand — to bear
  12. rule — to rule out
  13. straw — dry grass
  14. charge — electricity
  15. trunk — of an elephant
  16. straw — to clutch at straws
  17. straw — a straw man
  18. trunk — of a tree
  19. cell — in a prison
  20. cell — in biology
  21. arm — part of the body
  22. cell — a phone
  23. capital — money
  24. rule — government

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