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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 · season · rock · capital · calf · present · content · stick

  1. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  2. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  3. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  4. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  5. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  6. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  7. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  8. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  9. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  10. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  11. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  12. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  13. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  14. The tickets are free of ________________.
  15. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  16. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  17. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  18. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  19. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  20. Did you ________________ the meat?
  21. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  22. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  23. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  24. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. content — happy
  2. present — a gift
  3. capital — money
  4. rock — music
  5. charge — in control
  6. stick — to attach or keep to
  7. stick — a piece of wood
  8. season — of the year
  9. content — videos and posts
  10. capital — a city
  11. season — in sport
  12. calf — a young animal
  13. present — there
  14. charge — a price
  15. content — the amount
  16. present — the time now
  17. capital — a big letter
  18. calf — a young animal
  19. rock — to move gently
  20. season — to add flavour
  21. charge — electricity
  22. rock — a stone
  23. calf — of the leg
  24. stick — a piece of wood

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