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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. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  2. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  3. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  6. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  7. He is an ace ________________.
  8. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  9. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  10. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  11. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  12. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  13. Have you met the new head ________________?
  14. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  15. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  16. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  17. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  18. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  19. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  20. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  21. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  22. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  23. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  24. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a city
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. chair — a professorship
  4. capital — money
  5. chip — to eat
  6. pass — to succeed
  7. pitcher — in baseball
  8. chip — in a computer
  9. content — happy
  10. pass — a permit
  11. capital — a big letter
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. coach — pulled by horses
  15. wound — an injury
  16. wound — an injury
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. chair — a leader
  19. pass — to spend time
  20. content — videos and posts
  21. chip — for betting
  22. content — the amount
  23. wound — past of 'wind'
  24. chair — to sit on

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