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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.

Make a worksheet

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: cap · bound · march · chip · cell · staff · squash · mine

  1. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  2. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  3. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  4. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  5. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  6. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  7. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  8. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  9. That was ________________ to happen.
  10. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  11. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  12. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  13. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  14. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  15. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  16. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  17. He was locked up in a ________________.
  18. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  19. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  20. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  21. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  22. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  23. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  24. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — belonging to me
  2. squash — the vegetable
  3. cell — in biology
  4. chip — in a computer
  5. staff — employees
  6. staff — a stick
  7. march — music
  8. mine — an explosive
  9. bound — certain
  10. cap — of ice
  11. staff — employees
  12. chip — for betting
  13. cap — a hat
  14. march — the month
  15. squash — the sport
  16. chip — to eat
  17. cell — in a prison
  18. mine — for digging
  19. march — the month
  20. cap — a lid
  21. squash — to crush
  22. cell — a phone
  23. bound — obliged
  24. bound — tied together

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