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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: wind · stick · club · mouse · snap · capital · chip · jam

  1. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  2. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  3. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  4. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  5. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  6. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  7. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  8. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  9. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  10. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  11. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  12. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  13. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  14. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  15. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  16. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  17. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  18. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  19. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  20. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  21. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  22. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  23. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  24. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — money
  2. jam — to spread on bread
  3. stick — a piece of wood
  4. capital — a big letter
  5. stick — to attach or keep to
  6. wind — to turn a key
  7. snap — to click
  8. wind — moving air
  9. capital — a city
  10. snap — to speak sharply
  11. jam — a tight spot
  12. stick — a piece of wood
  13. club — for golf
  14. mouse — the animal
  15. mouse — for a computer
  16. club — for dancing
  17. snap — to snap out of it
  18. mouse — the animal
  19. chip — for betting
  20. chip — to eat
  21. jam — in traffic
  22. wind — moving air
  23. chip — in a computer
  24. club — a group

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