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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 · lean · pit · content · trunk · charge · court · rule

  1. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  2. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  3. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  4. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  5. The ball is in your ________________.
  6. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  7. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  8. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  9. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  10. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  11. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  12. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  13. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  14. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  15. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  16. The tickets are free of ________________.
  17. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  18. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  19. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  20. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  21. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  22. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  23. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  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. pit — a fruit stone
  2. court — of a king
  3. trunk — of a car
  4. content — happy
  5. court — for sport
  6. charge — electricity
  7. lean — to bend
  8. trunk — of a tree
  9. lean — thin
  10. lean — to rest against
  11. pit — in a race
  12. trunk — of an elephant
  13. content — the amount
  14. rule — a law
  15. capital — money
  16. charge — a price
  17. rule — to rule out
  18. pit — a hole
  19. court — of law
  20. capital — a city
  21. content — videos and posts
  22. capital — a big letter
  23. rule — government
  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