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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 120 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 · bat · spring · last · deal · mark · charge

  1. False peace will not ________________.
  2. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  3. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  4. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  5. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  6. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  7. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  8. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  9. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  10. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  11. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  12. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  13. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  14. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  15. The tickets are free of ________________.
  16. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  17. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  18. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  19. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  20. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  21. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  22. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  23. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  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. last — to go on
  2. deal — a big deal
  3. deal — to handle
  4. lean — thin
  5. lean — to rest against
  6. spring — of water
  7. capital — a big letter
  8. charge — electricity
  9. last — finally
  10. capital — money
  11. spring — the season
  12. bat — in an idiom
  13. spring — a coil
  14. last — final
  15. charge — a price
  16. deal — an agreement
  17. bat — the animal
  18. capital — a city
  19. charge — in control
  20. mark — a grade
  21. mark — to pay attention
  22. lean — to bend
  23. bat — for baseball
  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