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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: sharp · ball · capital · mark · spring · bass · game · charge

  1. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  2. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  3. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  4. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  5. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  6. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  7. That was a fun ________________.
  8. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  9. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  10. The tickets are free of ________________.
  11. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  12. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  13. The King held a masked ________________.
  14. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  15. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  16. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  17. It's one o'clock ________________.
  18. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  19. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  20. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  21. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  22. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  23. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  24. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — the instrument
  2. mark — to pay attention
  3. spring — the season
  4. capital — a big letter
  5. capital — a city
  6. sharp — with an edge
  7. game — a match
  8. game — wild animals
  9. charge — electricity
  10. charge — a price
  11. bass — low music
  12. spring — of water
  13. ball — a dance
  14. capital — money
  15. charge — in control
  16. ball — a great time
  17. sharp — exactly
  18. spring — a coil
  19. mark — a grade
  20. mark — a trace
  21. ball — a round shape
  22. sharp — clever
  23. bass — the fish
  24. game — a kind of play

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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