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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 · ground · bank · march · kick · capital

  1. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  2. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  3. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  4. There's no middle ________________.
  5. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  6. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  7. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  8. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  9. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  10. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  11. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  12. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  13. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  14. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  15. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  16. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  17. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  18. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — crushed
  2. march — music
  3. march — the month
  4. ground — a position
  5. bank — for money
  6. capital — a city
  7. kick — a thrill
  8. bank — for money
  9. ground — the earth
  10. bank — of a river
  11. chip — in a computer
  12. capital — a big letter
  13. kick — with a leg
  14. capital — money
  15. chip — for betting
  16. kick — in football
  17. chip — to eat
  18. march — the month

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