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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: capital · tube · bowl · root · craft · snap · stock · charge

  1. The tickets are free of ________________.
  2. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  3. The ________________ market has crashed.
  4. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  5. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  6. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  7. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  8. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  9. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  10. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  11. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  12. I'll be taking the ________________.
  13. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  14. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  15. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  16. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  17. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  18. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  19. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  20. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  21. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  22. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  23. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  24. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — a price
  2. stock — goods
  3. stock — shares
  4. charge — electricity
  5. bowl — a football final
  6. craft — boats
  7. craft — a handicraft
  8. snap — to speak sharply
  9. root — of a plant
  10. bowl — to roll
  11. craft — a skill
  12. tube — the underground
  13. capital — a city
  14. capital — a big letter
  15. stock — a soup base
  16. snap — to click
  17. charge — in control
  18. root — of a word
  19. tube — in a tire
  20. snap — to snap out of it
  21. root — the cause
  22. tube — a container
  23. capital — money
  24. bowl — a dish

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