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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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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: capital · stand · spring · pop · chip · court · branch · squash

  1. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  2. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  4. The ball is in your ________________.
  5. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  6. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  7. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  8. You don't need to ________________ round.
  9. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  10. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  11. We're almost out of ________________.
  12. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  13. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  14. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  15. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  16. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  17. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  18. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  19. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  20. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  21. I can't ________________ this cold.
  22. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  23. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  24. There's a computer ________________ on the table.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — of a tree
  2. capital — a big letter
  3. chip — to eat
  4. court — for sport
  5. squash — the sport
  6. squash — to crush
  7. branch — a division
  8. pop — to visit
  9. branch — of a bank
  10. court — of law
  11. pop — soda
  12. pop — music
  13. spring — of water
  14. spring — a coil
  15. stand — on your feet
  16. court — of a king
  17. capital — money
  18. stand — for spectators
  19. chip — for betting
  20. spring — the season
  21. stand — to bear
  22. squash — the vegetable
  23. capital — a city
  24. chip — in a computer

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