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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. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  2. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  3. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  4. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  5. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  6. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  7. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  8. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  9. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  10. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  11. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  12. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  13. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  14. The tickets are free of ________________.
  15. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  16. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  17. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  18. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  19. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  20. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  21. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  22. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  23. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  24. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.

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

Answer key

  1. calf — a young animal
  2. chair — a leader
  3. chair — to sit on
  4. charge — in control
  5. capital — a big letter
  6. chest — of your body
  7. squash — the vegetable
  8. squash — to crush
  9. calf — a young animal
  10. chair — a professorship
  11. squash — the sport
  12. march — music
  13. charge — electricity
  14. charge — a price
  15. chip — to eat
  16. chest — a box
  17. capital — a city
  18. capital — money
  19. march — the month
  20. calf — of the leg
  21. chest — of your body
  22. chip — in a computer
  23. march — the month
  24. chip — for betting

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