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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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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: band · sharp · wax · charge · stem · trunk · ball · capital

  1. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  2. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  3. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  4. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  5. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  6. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  7. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  8. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  9. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  10. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  11. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  12. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  13. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  14. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  15. It's one o'clock ________________.
  16. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  17. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  18. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  19. The King held a masked ________________.
  20. The tickets are free of ________________.
  21. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  22. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  23. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  24. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a music group
  2. sharp — clever
  3. stem — to come from
  4. band — a rubber band
  5. wax — for sculpting
  6. charge — in control
  7. trunk — of a tree
  8. stem — a stem cell
  9. capital — money
  10. trunk — of a car
  11. wax — in the ear
  12. sharp — with an edge
  13. band — a ring
  14. wax — to grow
  15. sharp — exactly
  16. stem — of a plant
  17. ball — a round shape
  18. trunk — of an elephant
  19. ball — a dance
  20. charge — a price
  21. charge — electricity
  22. capital — a big letter
  23. capital — a city
  24. ball — a great time

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