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

Word bank: deal · capital · stick · cell · squash · pop

  1. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  2. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  3. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  4. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  5. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  6. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  7. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  8. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  9. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  10. We're almost out of ________________.
  11. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  12. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  13. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  14. You don't need to ________________ round.
  15. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  16. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  17. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  18. He was locked up in a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a city
  2. cell — a phone
  3. deal — to handle
  4. squash — the sport
  5. cell — in biology
  6. pop — music
  7. stick — a piece of wood
  8. capital — money
  9. squash — to crush
  10. pop — soda
  11. stick — a piece of wood
  12. deal — an agreement
  13. capital — a big letter
  14. pop — to visit
  15. squash — the vegetable
  16. stick — to attach or keep to
  17. deal — a big deal
  18. cell — in a prison

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