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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. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  2. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  4. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  5. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  6. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  7. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  8. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  9. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  10. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  11. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  12. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  13. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  14. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  15. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  16. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  17. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  18. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  19. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  20. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  21. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  22. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  23. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  24. He took the fish out of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chip — in a computer
  2. capital — a big letter
  3. capital — a city
  4. board — a committee
  5. hand — in cards
  6. capital — money
  7. hand — help
  8. pitch — a sports field
  9. trunk — of an elephant
  10. board — a flat piece
  11. bark — of a tree
  12. pitch — a sales talk
  13. net — in sport
  14. trunk — of a tree
  15. bark — a dog's sound
  16. net — after costs
  17. board — to get on
  18. chip — to eat
  19. pitch — completely
  20. chip — for betting
  21. bark — to shout
  22. hand — part of the body
  23. trunk — of a car
  24. net — for catching

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