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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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Word bank
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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: chip · capital · pitcher · rule · foot · tear

  1. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  2. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  3. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  4. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  5. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  6. He is an ace ________________.
  7. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  8. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  9. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  10. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  11. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  12. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  13. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  14. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  15. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  16. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  17. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  18. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.

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

Answer key

  1. chip — for betting
  2. capital — a city
  3. chip — in a computer
  4. foot — a measure
  5. capital — money
  6. pitcher — in baseball
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. tear — from crying
  9. chip — to eat
  10. foot — part of the body
  11. rule — government
  12. tear — from crying
  13. rule — to rule out
  14. capital — a big letter
  15. rule — a law
  16. tear — to rip
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. foot — the bottom

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