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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 124 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. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  2. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  3. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  4. When are we going to ________________?
  5. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  6. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  7. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  8. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  9. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  10. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  11. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  12. He was locked up in a ________________.
  13. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  14. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  15. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  16. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  17. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  18. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  19. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  20. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  21. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  22. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  23. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  24. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chip — for betting
  2. staff — employees
  3. cue — a hint
  4. land — to come down
  5. capital — a big letter
  6. scale — for weighing
  7. capital — a city
  8. cell — a phone
  9. cue — for pool
  10. club — a group
  11. chip — in a computer
  12. cell — in a prison
  13. cell — in biology
  14. staff — a stick
  15. scale — in music
  16. club — for golf
  17. chip — to eat
  18. staff — employees
  19. cue — a signal
  20. capital — money
  21. land — a country
  22. land — ground
  23. club — for dancing
  24. scale — size or range

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