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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 116 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 speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  2. That was a fun ________________.
  3. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  4. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  5. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  6. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  7. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  8. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  9. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  10. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  11. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  12. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  13. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  14. He was locked up in a ________________.
  15. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  16. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  17. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  18. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  19. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  20. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  21. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  22. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  23. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  24. Beijing is the ________________ of China.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — a trail
  2. game — a match
  3. cap — a lid
  4. cell — in biology
  5. cell — a phone
  6. board — to get on
  7. pound — for dogs
  8. board — a flat piece
  9. cap — a hat
  10. pound — a weight
  11. cap — of ice
  12. chip — for betting
  13. capital — a big letter
  14. cell — in a prison
  15. game — wild animals
  16. chip — in a computer
  17. wake — to stop sleeping
  18. game — a kind of play
  19. wake — before a funeral
  20. chip — to eat
  21. capital — money
  22. pound — to hit hard
  23. board — a committee
  24. capital — a city

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