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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: press · capital · band · coach · club · kid · scale · chip

  1. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  2. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  3. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  4. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  5. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  6. Did you ________________ the button?
  7. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  8. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  9. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  10. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  11. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  12. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  13. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  14. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  15. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  16. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  17. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  18. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  19. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  20. Have you met the new head ________________?
  21. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  22. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  23. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  24. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.

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

Answer key

  1. press — newspapers
  2. band — a ring
  3. club — for golf
  4. chip — for betting
  5. capital — a city
  6. press — to push
  7. press — a publisher
  8. kid — child
  9. band — a music group
  10. coach — pulled by horses
  11. scale — size or range
  12. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. capital — a big letter
  15. chip — to eat
  16. capital — money
  17. band — a rubber band
  18. club — a group
  19. club — for dancing
  20. coach — a trainer
  21. scale — in music
  22. chip — in a computer
  23. kid — to tease
  24. scale — for weighing

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