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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 · last · race · cabinet · capital · drill

  1. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  2. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  3. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  4. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  5. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  6. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  7. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  8. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  9. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  10. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  11. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  12. False peace will not ________________.
  13. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  16. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  17. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  18. What do you think of the new ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. drill — the tool
  2. cabinet — a cupboard
  3. race — a contest
  4. race — the arms race
  5. cabinet — ministers
  6. drill — a practice
  7. drill — army training
  8. last — finally
  9. capital — money
  10. race — humankind
  11. last — final
  12. last — to go on
  13. chip — to eat
  14. capital — a city
  15. chip — in a computer
  16. capital — a big letter
  17. chip — for betting
  18. cabinet — ministers

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