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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. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  2. We're on a ________________ here.
  3. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  4. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  5. She's very handy with a ________________.
  6. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  7. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  8. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  9. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  10. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  11. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  12. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  13. He works in a ________________ mill.
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  16. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  17. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  18. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  19. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  20. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  21. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  22. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  23. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  24. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — a law
  2. roll — on a roll
  3. chip — for betting
  4. capital — a big letter
  5. saw — the tool
  6. band — a ring
  7. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  8. roll — a cake
  9. chip — to eat
  10. rule — government
  11. kid — child
  12. fan — a supporter
  13. saw — the tool
  14. capital — a city
  15. saw — past of 'see'
  16. rule — to rule out
  17. roll — a list
  18. fan — to cool the air
  19. chip — in a computer
  20. kid — to tease
  21. capital — money
  22. fan — a supporter
  23. band — a rubber band
  24. band — a music group

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