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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
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: capital · chip · fine · fan · field · march · cell · degree

  1. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  2. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  3. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  4. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  5. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  6. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  7. He was locked up in a ________________.
  8. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  9. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  10. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  11. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  12. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  13. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  14. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  15. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  16. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  17. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  18. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  19. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  20. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  21. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  22. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  23. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  24. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a big letter
  2. chip — for betting
  3. fine — all right
  4. cell — a phone
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. cell — in biology
  7. cell — in a prison
  8. fine — a penalty
  9. degree — temperature
  10. degree — from a university
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. fan — to cool the air
  13. fine — high quality
  14. march — the month
  15. capital — money
  16. field — a subject
  17. capital — a city
  18. chip — in a computer
  19. chip — to eat
  20. march — music
  21. field — for sport
  22. march — the month
  23. degree — an amount
  24. field — farmland

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