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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. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  2. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  3. Have you met the new head ________________?
  4. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  5. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  6. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  7. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  8. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  9. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  10. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  11. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  12. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  13. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  14. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  15. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  16. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  17. That was a fun ________________.
  18. How do you ________________ your surname?
  19. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  20. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  21. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  22. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  23. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  24. Let us try to swim against the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. game — wild animals
  2. chip — to eat
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. capital — a big letter
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. rest — what's left
  7. game — a kind of play
  8. coach — pulled by horses
  9. current — happening now
  10. pass — to succeed
  11. spell — magic
  12. spell — a short time
  13. rest — what's left
  14. current — electric
  15. chip — in a computer
  16. chip — for betting
  17. game — a match
  18. spell — letters
  19. capital — money
  20. rest — a break
  21. capital — a city
  22. pass — a permit
  23. pass — to spend time
  24. current — of water

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