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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 120 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: pop · capital · shower · chip · bat · pass · temple · march

  1. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  2. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  3. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  4. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  5. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  6. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  7. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  8. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  9. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  10. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  11. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  12. We're almost out of ________________.
  13. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  14. You don't need to ________________ round.
  15. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  16. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  17. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  18. When was this ________________ built?
  19. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  20. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  21. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  22. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  23. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  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. chip — for betting
  2. pass — to succeed
  3. bat — the animal
  4. march — the month
  5. capital — a city
  6. chip — in a computer
  7. march — music
  8. temple — side of the head
  9. temple — a place of worship
  10. shower — rain
  11. pass — a permit
  12. pop — soda
  13. march — the month
  14. pop — to visit
  15. shower — to wash
  16. capital — money
  17. capital — a big letter
  18. temple — a place of worship
  19. pop — music
  20. bat — in an idiom
  21. pass — to spend time
  22. shower — a meteor shower
  23. bat — for baseball
  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