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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 120 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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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: bass · fall · chip · kid · nail · capital · snap · object

  1. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  2. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  3. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  4. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  5. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  6. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  7. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  8. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  9. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  10. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  11. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  12. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  13. The ________________ went through the wall.
  14. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  15. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  16. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  17. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  18. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  19. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  20. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  21. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  22. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  23. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  24. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — money
  2. bass — the fish
  3. kid — child
  4. chip — to eat
  5. nail — on a finger
  6. snap — to click
  7. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  8. capital — a city
  9. object — to protest
  10. capital — a big letter
  11. nail — for a hammer
  12. snap — to speak sharply
  13. nail — for a hammer
  14. chip — in a computer
  15. object — an aim
  16. kid — to tease
  17. chip — for betting
  18. fall — to drop
  19. snap — to snap out of it
  20. object — a thing
  21. fall — the season
  22. bass — the instrument
  23. bass — low music
  24. fall — to drop

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