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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: bat · chip · capital · suit · ruler · cell

  1. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  2. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  3. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  4. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  5. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  6. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  7. When will it ________________ you to start?
  8. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  9. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  10. He was locked up in a ________________.
  11. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  12. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  13. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  16. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  17. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  18. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!

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

Answer key

  1. capital — money
  2. bat — for baseball
  3. chip — to eat
  4. cell — in biology
  5. chip — in a computer
  6. suit — in cards
  7. suit — to fit
  8. ruler — for measuring
  9. suit — clothes
  10. cell — in a prison
  11. chip — for betting
  12. capital — a big letter
  13. bat — in an idiom
  14. capital — a city
  15. ruler — a monarch
  16. bat — the animal
  17. ruler — for measuring
  18. cell — a phone

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