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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: squash · chair · fine · capital · scale · charge · chest · stock

  1. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  2. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  3. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  6. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  7. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  8. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  9. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  10. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  11. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  12. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  13. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  14. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  15. The tickets are free of ________________.
  16. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  17. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  18. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  19. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  20. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  21. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  22. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  23. The ________________ market has crashed.
  24. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a professorship
  2. squash — to crush
  3. chair — a leader
  4. capital — money
  5. charge — electricity
  6. chair — to sit on
  7. chest — of your body
  8. squash — the sport
  9. fine — a penalty
  10. capital — a big letter
  11. squash — the vegetable
  12. fine — high quality
  13. scale — for weighing
  14. scale — size or range
  15. charge — a price
  16. chest — of your body
  17. fine — all right
  18. stock — a soup base
  19. scale — in music
  20. stock — goods
  21. chest — a box
  22. capital — a city
  23. stock — shares
  24. charge — in control

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