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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: mate · board · court · wound · capital · tube · spell · charge

  1. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  2. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  3. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  4. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  5. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  6. Have you found your soul ________________?
  7. The tickets are free of ________________.
  8. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  9. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  10. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  11. The ball is in your ________________.
  12. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  13. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  14. I'll be taking the ________________.
  15. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  16. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  17. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  18. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  19. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  20. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  21. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  22. How do you ________________ your surname?
  23. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  24. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — in control
  2. capital — money
  3. court — of a king
  4. charge — electricity
  5. mate — a friend
  6. mate — a partner
  7. charge — a price
  8. court — of law
  9. wound — past of 'wind'
  10. board — a committee
  11. court — for sport
  12. mate — to breed
  13. spell — magic
  14. tube — the underground
  15. board — a flat piece
  16. wound — an injury
  17. capital — a city
  18. tube — a container
  19. wound — an injury
  20. tube — in a tire
  21. board — to get on
  22. spell — letters
  23. spell — a short time
  24. capital — a big letter

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