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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: capital · branch · bound · stand · stem · land · chip · wake

  1. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  2. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  3. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  4. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  5. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  6. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  7. I can't ________________ this cold.
  8. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  9. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  10. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  11. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  12. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  13. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  14. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  15. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  16. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  17. That was ________________ to happen.
  18. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  19. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  20. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  21. When are we going to ________________?
  22. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  23. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  24. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a city
  2. bound — obliged
  3. capital — a big letter
  4. wake — to stop sleeping
  5. wake — before a funeral
  6. chip — in a computer
  7. stand — to bear
  8. branch — of a tree
  9. wake — a trail
  10. stand — on your feet
  11. branch — a division
  12. stem — to come from
  13. land — ground
  14. chip — for betting
  15. chip — to eat
  16. bound — tied together
  17. bound — certain
  18. land — a country
  19. stand — for spectators
  20. capital — money
  21. land — to come down
  22. stem — a stem cell
  23. stem — of a plant
  24. branch — of a bank

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