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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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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: ball · chip · stock · key · cabinet · band · capital · pop

  1. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  2. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  3. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  4. The ________________ market has crashed.
  5. What do you think of the new ________________?
  6. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  7. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  8. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  9. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  10. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  11. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  12. This piece is in a major ________________.
  13. The King held a masked ________________.
  14. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  15. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  16. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  17. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  18. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  19. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  20. We're almost out of ________________.
  21. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  22. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  23. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  24. You don't need to ________________ round.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — money
  2. band — a ring
  3. chip — for betting
  4. stock — shares
  5. cabinet — ministers
  6. capital — a city
  7. key — for a lock
  8. stock — goods
  9. chip — in a computer
  10. capital — a big letter
  11. ball — a round shape
  12. key — in music
  13. ball — a dance
  14. cabinet — a cupboard
  15. pop — music
  16. band — a music group
  17. ball — a great time
  18. band — a rubber band
  19. cabinet — ministers
  20. pop — soda
  21. chip — to eat
  22. key — the most important part
  23. stock — a soup base
  24. pop — to visit

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