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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: cold · racket · roll · chair · branch · capital · chip · ball

  1. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  2. We're on a ________________ here.
  3. The King held a masked ________________.
  4. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  5. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  8. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  9. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  10. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  11. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  12. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  13. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  14. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  15. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  16. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  17. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  18. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  19. The water is too ________________.
  20. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  21. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  22. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  23. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  24. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.

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

Answer key

  1. chip — for betting
  2. roll — on a roll
  3. ball — a dance
  4. branch — of a bank
  5. branch — of a tree
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. branch — a division
  8. ball — a round shape
  9. roll — a list
  10. ball — a great time
  11. cold — an illness
  12. chip — to eat
  13. chair — to sit on
  14. chair — a professorship
  15. chip — in a computer
  16. capital — money
  17. capital — a city
  18. racket — for tennis
  19. cold — not warm
  20. racket — for tennis
  21. racket — a loud noise
  22. roll — a cake
  23. chair — a leader
  24. capital — a big letter

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