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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: trunk · content · temple · last · capital · chip · bank · hand

  1. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  2. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  3. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  4. When was this ________________ built?
  5. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  6. False peace will not ________________.
  7. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  8. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  9. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  10. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  11. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  12. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  13. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  14. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  15. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  16. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  17. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  18. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  19. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  20. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  21. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  22. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  23. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  24. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.

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

Answer key

  1. chip — in a computer
  2. last — finally
  3. capital — a big letter
  4. temple — a place of worship
  5. capital — money
  6. last — to go on
  7. hand — part of the body
  8. hand — help
  9. content — happy
  10. trunk — of an elephant
  11. last — final
  12. trunk — of a car
  13. capital — a city
  14. content — the amount
  15. temple — a place of worship
  16. bank — for money
  17. temple — side of the head
  18. trunk — of a tree
  19. chip — to eat
  20. chip — for betting
  21. hand — in cards
  22. content — videos and posts
  23. bank — of a river
  24. bank — for money

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