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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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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: foot · leaves · rule · jam · season · chip · capital · racket

  1. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  2. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  3. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  4. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  5. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  6. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  7. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  8. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  9. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  10. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  11. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  12. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  13. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  14. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  15. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  16. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  17. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  18. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  19. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  20. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  21. Did you ________________ the meat?
  22. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  23. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  24. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — to go away
  2. season — of the year
  3. capital — a city
  4. rule — government
  5. chip — in a computer
  6. leaves — of a tree
  7. capital — a big letter
  8. foot — the bottom
  9. jam — to spread on bread
  10. jam — in traffic
  11. chip — for betting
  12. chip — to eat
  13. racket — a loud noise
  14. racket — for tennis
  15. foot — part of the body
  16. leaves — lets stay
  17. foot — a measure
  18. jam — a tight spot
  19. capital — money
  20. season — in sport
  21. season — to add flavour
  22. rule — a law
  23. racket — for tennis
  24. rule — to rule out

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