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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: stock · rush · charge · file · lie · capital · branch · row

  1. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  2. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  3. The ________________ market has crashed.
  4. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  5. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  6. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  7. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  8. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  9. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  10. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  11. The tickets are free of ________________.
  12. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  13. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  14. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  15. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  16. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  17. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  18. That must've been a ________________.
  19. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  20. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  21. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  22. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  23. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  24. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — to hurry
  2. capital — money
  3. stock — shares
  4. rush — hurry
  5. capital — a big letter
  6. capital — a city
  7. charge — electricity
  8. branch — of a bank
  9. file — a document
  10. file — a line of people
  11. charge — a price
  12. lie — to recline
  13. branch — of a tree
  14. stock — goods
  15. row — a line
  16. lie — an untruth
  17. row — a quarrel
  18. rush — a thrill
  19. branch — a division
  20. lie — an untruth
  21. stock — a soup base
  22. charge — in control
  23. row — to paddle
  24. file — a tool

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