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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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: deal · chip · capital · stem · calf · press

  1. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  2. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  3. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  4. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  5. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  6. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  7. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  8. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  9. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  10. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  11. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  12. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  13. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  14. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  15. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  16. Did you ________________ the button?
  17. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  18. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — an agreement
  2. press — a publisher
  3. stem — to come from
  4. capital — a city
  5. calf — a young animal
  6. chip — for betting
  7. press — newspapers
  8. capital — a big letter
  9. calf — a young animal
  10. deal — a big deal
  11. calf — of the leg
  12. stem — a stem cell
  13. chip — in a computer
  14. chip — to eat
  15. stem — of a plant
  16. press — to push
  17. capital — money
  18. deal — to handle

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