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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: capital · snap · bank · fine · charge · clip · kid · court

  1. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  2. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  3. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  4. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  5. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  6. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  7. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  8. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  9. The tickets are free of ________________.
  10. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  11. The ball is in your ________________.
  12. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  13. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  14. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  15. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  16. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  17. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  18. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  19. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  20. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  21. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  22. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  23. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  24. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to speak sharply
  2. kid — child
  3. fine — high quality
  4. clip — a video
  5. clip — for paper
  6. court — of a king
  7. capital — money
  8. snap — to snap out of it
  9. charge — a price
  10. charge — electricity
  11. court — for sport
  12. capital — a city
  13. fine — a penalty
  14. bank — for money
  15. fine — all right
  16. charge — in control
  17. bank — of a river
  18. bank — for money
  19. capital — a big letter
  20. court — of law
  21. snap — to click
  22. kid — to tease
  23. clip — to cut
  24. kid — young goat (kid gloves)

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