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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 beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  2. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  3. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  4. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  5. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  6. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  7. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  8. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  9. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  10. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  11. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  12. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  13. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  14. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  15. There's no middle ________________.
  16. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  17. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  18. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  19. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  20. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  21. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  22. He is an ace ________________.
  23. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  24. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a big letter
  2. chip — for betting
  3. branch — of a bank
  4. ground — crushed
  5. capital — money
  6. chip — to eat
  7. chip — in a computer
  8. fan — to cool the air
  9. branch — of a tree
  10. fork — in a road
  11. scale — in music
  12. fork — a garden tool
  13. fork — to eat with
  14. fan — a supporter
  15. ground — a position
  16. branch — a division
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. ground — the earth
  21. scale — for weighing
  22. pitcher — in baseball
  23. capital — a city
  24. scale — size or range

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