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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: charge · spell · calf · capital · bay · spring · file · cell

  1. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  2. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  3. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  4. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  5. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  6. He was locked up in a ________________.
  7. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  8. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  9. How do you ________________ your surname?
  10. The tickets are free of ________________.
  11. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  12. My mare is ________________ in color.
  13. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  14. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  15. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  16. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  17. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  18. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  19. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  20. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  21. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  22. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  23. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  24. Beijing is the ________________ of China.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a big letter
  2. charge — electricity
  3. spell — a short time
  4. bay — a part of the sea
  5. calf — a young animal
  6. cell — in a prison
  7. cell — in biology
  8. calf — of the leg
  9. spell — letters
  10. charge — a price
  11. spring — a coil
  12. bay — a horse colour
  13. spring — the season
  14. charge — in control
  15. capital — money
  16. file — a line of people
  17. file — a tool
  18. bay — to keep at bay
  19. file — a document
  20. spring — of water
  21. calf — a young animal
  22. cell — a phone
  23. spell — magic
  24. capital — a city

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