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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. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  2. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  3. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  4. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  5. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  6. When was this ________________ built?
  7. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  8. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  9. How do you ________________ your surname?
  10. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  11. I'll be taking the ________________.
  12. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  13. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  14. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  15. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  16. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  17. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  18. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  19. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  20. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  21. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  22. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  23. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  24. Beijing is the ________________ of China.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — a coil
  2. chip — in a computer
  3. capital — a big letter
  4. spell — magic
  5. cap — of ice
  6. temple — a place of worship
  7. temple — a place of worship
  8. chip — to eat
  9. spell — letters
  10. tube — in a tire
  11. tube — the underground
  12. spring — the season
  13. spring — of water
  14. clip — a video
  15. cap — a hat
  16. capital — money
  17. clip — to cut
  18. chip — for betting
  19. spell — a short time
  20. temple — side of the head
  21. tube — a container
  22. clip — for paper
  23. cap — a lid
  24. capital — a city

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