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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: court · capital · bowl · calf · last · chip · rash · branch

  1. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  2. Don't do anything ________________.
  3. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  4. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  5. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  6. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  7. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  8. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  9. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  10. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  11. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  12. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  13. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  14. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  15. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  16. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  17. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  18. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  19. False peace will not ________________.
  20. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  21. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  22. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  23. The ball is in your ________________.
  24. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — on the skin
  2. rash — hasty
  3. calf — a young animal
  4. chip — in a computer
  5. last — final
  6. capital — a city
  7. court — of law
  8. capital — a big letter
  9. bowl — a football final
  10. calf — a young animal
  11. branch — of a tree
  12. branch — a division
  13. court — of a king
  14. calf — of the leg
  15. rash — a series
  16. bowl — a dish
  17. bowl — to roll
  18. last — finally
  19. last — to go on
  20. branch — of a bank
  21. capital — money
  22. chip — for betting
  23. court — for sport
  24. 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