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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 116 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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  2. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  3. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  6. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  7. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  8. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  9. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  10. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  11. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  12. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  13. When are we going to ________________?
  14. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  15. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  16. That was a fun ________________.
  17. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  18. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a rubber band
  2. mouse — the animal
  3. land — ground
  4. capital — money
  5. capital — a big letter
  6. mouse — the animal
  7. game — wild animals
  8. mouse — for a computer
  9. capital — a city
  10. band — a music group
  11. deal — an agreement
  12. game — a kind of play
  13. land — to come down
  14. band — a ring
  15. deal — to handle
  16. game — a match
  17. land — a country
  18. deal — a big deal

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