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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
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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: chest · field · sharp · capital · branch · temple · bear · chip

  1. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  2. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  3. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  4. When was this ________________ built?
  5. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  6. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  7. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  8. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  9. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  10. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  11. It's one o'clock ________________.
  12. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  13. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  14. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  15. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  16. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  17. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  18. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  19. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  20. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  21. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  22. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  23. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  24. Beijing is the ________________ of China.

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

Answer key

  1. chip — in a computer
  2. chip — to eat
  3. temple — side of the head
  4. temple — a place of worship
  5. bear — to put up with
  6. bear — the animal
  7. field — for sport
  8. chest — a box
  9. sharp — clever
  10. capital — money
  11. sharp — exactly
  12. field — farmland
  13. chip — for betting
  14. field — a subject
  15. chest — of your body
  16. chest — of your body
  17. branch — of a bank
  18. capital — a big letter
  19. branch — a division
  20. sharp — with an edge
  21. bear — the animal
  22. branch — of a tree
  23. temple — a place of worship
  24. capital — a city

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