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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 120 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. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  2. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  3. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  4. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  5. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  6. The ball is in your ________________.
  7. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  8. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  9. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  10. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  11. Did you ________________ the button?
  12. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  13. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  14. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  15. She's very handy with a ________________.
  16. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  17. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  18. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  19. When was this ________________ built?
  20. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  21. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  22. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  23. He works in a ________________ mill.
  24. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — an agreement
  2. temple — a place of worship
  3. capital — money
  4. capital — a city
  5. stem — a stem cell
  6. court — for sport
  7. capital — a big letter
  8. stem — to come from
  9. press — a publisher
  10. press — newspapers
  11. press — to push
  12. chip — for betting
  13. court — of a king
  14. chip — in a computer
  15. saw — the tool
  16. deal — to handle
  17. stem — of a plant
  18. court — of law
  19. temple — a place of worship
  20. chip — to eat
  21. temple — side of the head
  22. deal — a big deal
  23. saw — the tool
  24. saw — past of 'see'

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