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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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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: chair · lie · object · cap · stem · chip · capital · pop

  1. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  2. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  3. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  4. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  5. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  6. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  7. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  8. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  9. You don't need to ________________ round.
  10. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  11. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  12. We're almost out of ________________.
  13. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  14. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  15. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  16. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  17. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  18. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  19. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  20. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  21. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  22. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  23. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  24. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — a stem cell
  2. pop — music
  3. capital — money
  4. cap — of ice
  5. stem — of a plant
  6. chair — a leader
  7. capital — a big letter
  8. chair — a professorship
  9. pop — to visit
  10. object — a thing
  11. object — to protest
  12. pop — soda
  13. chip — to eat
  14. chair — to sit on
  15. stem — to come from
  16. object — an aim
  17. lie — an untruth
  18. chip — in a computer
  19. lie — an untruth
  20. cap — a hat
  21. lie — to recline
  22. cap — a lid
  23. capital — a city
  24. chip — for betting

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