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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: chip · club · press · cap · row · wake

  1. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  2. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  3. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  4. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  5. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  6. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  7. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  8. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  9. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  10. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  11. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  12. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  13. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  14. Did you ________________ the button?
  15. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  16. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  17. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  18. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a hat
  2. cap — a lid
  3. chip — to eat
  4. club — for dancing
  5. club — for golf
  6. press — a publisher
  7. chip — for betting
  8. chip — in a computer
  9. row — to paddle
  10. wake — to stop sleeping
  11. row — a quarrel
  12. press — newspapers
  13. wake — before a funeral
  14. press — to push
  15. club — a group
  16. cap — of ice
  17. row — a line
  18. wake — a trail

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