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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 116 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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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: object · wake · cap · chip · field · capital · rule · court

  1. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  2. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  3. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  4. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  5. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  6. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  7. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  8. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  9. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  10. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  11. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  12. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  13. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  14. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  15. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  16. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  17. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  18. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  19. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  20. The ball is in your ________________.
  21. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  22. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  23. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  24. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?

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

Answer key

  1. object — a thing
  2. field — farmland
  3. wake — before a funeral
  4. rule — to rule out
  5. capital — a city
  6. capital — a big letter
  7. object — an aim
  8. capital — money
  9. rule — government
  10. wake — to stop sleeping
  11. rule — a law
  12. field — a subject
  13. wake — a trail
  14. cap — a hat
  15. chip — to eat
  16. field — for sport
  17. chip — in a computer
  18. cap — of ice
  19. court — of a king
  20. court — for sport
  21. court — of law
  22. chip — for betting
  23. object — to protest
  24. cap — a lid

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