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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. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  2. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. When are we going to ________________?
  4. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  5. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  6. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  7. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  8. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  9. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  10. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  11. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  12. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  13. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  14. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  15. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  16. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  17. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  18. That was ________________ to happen.
  19. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  20. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  21. False peace will not ________________.
  22. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  23. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  24. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mouse — for a computer
  2. capital — a big letter
  3. land — to come down
  4. last — final
  5. trunk — of a car
  6. land — ground
  7. capital — money
  8. chip — to eat
  9. last — finally
  10. club — for dancing
  11. trunk — of a tree
  12. bound — tied together
  13. trunk — of an elephant
  14. chip — in a computer
  15. club — a group
  16. land — a country
  17. chip — for betting
  18. bound — certain
  19. mouse — the animal
  20. capital — a city
  21. last — to go on
  22. bound — obliged
  23. club — for golf
  24. mouse — the animal

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