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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: spell · capital · chip · cell · bear · pass

  1. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  2. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  4. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  5. How do you ________________ your surname?
  6. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  7. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  8. He was locked up in a ________________.
  9. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  10. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  11. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  12. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  13. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  14. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  15. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  16. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  17. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  18. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — money
  2. capital — a big letter
  3. pass — to succeed
  4. capital — a city
  5. spell — letters
  6. pass — a permit
  7. spell — a short time
  8. cell — in a prison
  9. spell — magic
  10. chip — for betting
  11. bear — to put up with
  12. pass — to spend time
  13. cell — in biology
  14. chip — in a computer
  15. bear — the animal
  16. cell — a phone
  17. bear — the animal
  18. chip — to eat

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