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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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  2. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  3. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  4. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  5. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  6. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  7. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  8. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  9. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  10. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  11. It's one o'clock ________________.
  12. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  13. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  14. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  15. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  16. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  17. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  18. When are we going to ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. chip — to eat
  2. band — a ring
  3. bank — for money
  4. band — a rubber band
  5. bank — of a river
  6. capital — money
  7. sharp — clever
  8. chip — for betting
  9. land — ground
  10. land — a country
  11. sharp — exactly
  12. band — a music group
  13. bank — for money
  14. chip — in a computer
  15. capital — a city
  16. capital — a big letter
  17. sharp — with an edge
  18. land — to come down

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