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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: rash · capital · patient · object · key · chip · sharp · cell

  1. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  2. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  3. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  4. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  5. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  6. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  7. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  8. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  9. It's one o'clock ________________.
  10. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  11. He was locked up in a ________________.
  12. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  13. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  14. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  15. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  16. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  17. Don't do anything ________________.
  18. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  19. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  20. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  21. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  22. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  23. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  24. This piece is in a major ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. object — to protest
  2. chip — to eat
  3. sharp — clever
  4. rash — a series
  5. capital — a big letter
  6. cell — a phone
  7. key — for a lock
  8. capital — money
  9. sharp — exactly
  10. key — the most important part
  11. cell — in a prison
  12. rash — on the skin
  13. chip — for betting
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. object — an aim
  16. cell — in biology
  17. rash — hasty
  18. patient — calm and waiting
  19. chip — in a computer
  20. patient — a sick person
  21. capital — a city
  22. object — a thing
  23. sharp — with an edge
  24. key — in music

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