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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: coach · capital · spring · scale · chair · spell · bark · charge

  1. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  2. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  3. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  4. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  5. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  6. How do you ________________ your surname?
  7. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  8. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  9. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  10. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  11. Have you met the new head ________________?
  12. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  13. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  14. The tickets are free of ________________.
  15. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  16. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  17. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  18. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  19. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  20. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  21. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  22. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  23. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  24. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a leader
  2. bark — to shout
  3. capital — a city
  4. scale — in music
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. spell — letters
  7. bark — a dog's sound
  8. capital — money
  9. spring — the season
  10. spell — magic
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. spell — a short time
  13. scale — size or range
  14. charge — a price
  15. chair — to sit on
  16. bark — of a tree
  17. coach — pulled by horses
  18. charge — electricity
  19. capital — a big letter
  20. chair — a professorship
  21. charge — in control
  22. scale — for weighing
  23. spring — a coil
  24. spring — of water

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