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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: chair · band · tear · capital · chip · saw

  1. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  2. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  3. He works in a ________________ mill.
  4. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  5. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  6. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  7. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  8. She's very handy with a ________________.
  9. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  10. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  11. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  12. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  13. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  14. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  15. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  16. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  17. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  18. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — money
  2. band — a rubber band
  3. saw — the tool
  4. tear — from crying
  5. saw — past of 'see'
  6. tear — from crying
  7. chip — for betting
  8. saw — the tool
  9. tear — to rip
  10. chair — to sit on
  11. chip — to eat
  12. capital — a big letter
  13. chair — a professorship
  14. band — a music group
  15. capital — a city
  16. band — a ring
  17. chip — in a computer
  18. chair — a leader

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