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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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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: cue · row · capital · plane · spell · chip · tear · dip

  1. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  2. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  3. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  4. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  5. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  6. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  7. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  8. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  9. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  10. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  11. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  12. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  13. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  14. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  15. The ________________ took off on time.
  16. How do you ________________ your surname?
  17. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  18. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  19. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  20. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  21. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  22. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  23. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  24. I had a ________________ with my boss today.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. capital — a city
  3. chip — for betting
  4. cue — for pool
  5. plane — in geometry
  6. plane — a tool
  7. cue — a signal
  8. dip — to dunk
  9. row — to paddle
  10. cue — a hint
  11. chip — to eat
  12. dip — to sink
  13. spell — a short time
  14. spell — magic
  15. plane — an aircraft
  16. spell — letters
  17. row — a line
  18. tear — to rip
  19. dip — a sauce
  20. tear — from crying
  21. chip — in a computer
  22. capital — a big letter
  23. capital — money
  24. row — a quarrel

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