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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 116 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: capital · ground · rash · fall · charge · spring · drill · ball

  1. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  2. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. The King held a masked ________________.
  5. Don't do anything ________________.
  6. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  7. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  8. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  9. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  10. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  11. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  12. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  13. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  16. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  17. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  18. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  19. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  20. There's no middle ________________.
  21. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  22. The tickets are free of ________________.
  23. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  24. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — of water
  2. ball — a great time
  3. spring — a coil
  4. ball — a dance
  5. rash — hasty
  6. charge — electricity
  7. drill — army training
  8. charge — in control
  9. drill — a practice
  10. spring — the season
  11. ground — the earth
  12. fall — the season
  13. drill — the tool
  14. capital — a city
  15. rash — on the skin
  16. capital — money
  17. capital — a big letter
  18. rash — a series
  19. ground — crushed
  20. ground — a position
  21. ball — a round shape
  22. charge — a price
  23. fall — to drop
  24. fall — to drop

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