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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: chip · racket · game · capital · object · saw · pitcher · field

  1. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  2. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  3. She's very handy with a ________________.
  4. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  5. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  6. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  7. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  8. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  9. He is an ace ________________.
  10. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  11. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  12. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  13. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  14. That was a fun ________________.
  15. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  16. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  17. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  18. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  19. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  20. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  21. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  22. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  23. He works in a ________________ mill.
  24. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. chip — for betting
  3. saw — the tool
  4. chip — to eat
  5. racket — for tennis
  6. saw — past of 'see'
  7. field — for sport
  8. object — a thing
  9. pitcher — in baseball
  10. object — an aim
  11. chip — in a computer
  12. capital — money
  13. racket — a loud noise
  14. game — a match
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. object — to protest
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. field — a subject
  19. capital — a city
  20. game — wild animals
  21. capital — a big letter
  22. racket — for tennis
  23. saw — the tool
  24. game — a kind of play

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