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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: dip · capital · mark · fan · land · charge · season · branch

  1. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  2. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  3. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  4. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  5. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  6. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  7. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  8. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  9. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  10. When are we going to ________________?
  11. Did you ________________ the meat?
  12. The tickets are free of ________________.
  13. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  16. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  17. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  18. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  19. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  20. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  21. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  22. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  23. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  24. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.

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

Answer key

  1. land — ground
  2. mark — to pay attention
  3. mark — a grade
  4. branch — of a tree
  5. charge — electricity
  6. dip — to dunk
  7. dip — a sauce
  8. fan — to cool the air
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. land — to come down
  11. season — to add flavour
  12. charge — a price
  13. season — of the year
  14. capital — a city
  15. land — a country
  16. capital — a big letter
  17. season — in sport
  18. dip — to sink
  19. branch — of a bank
  20. charge — in control
  21. fan — a supporter
  22. branch — a division
  23. capital — money
  24. mark — a trace

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