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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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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's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  2. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  3. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  4. You don't need to ________________ round.
  5. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  6. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  7. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  8. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  9. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  10. We're almost out of ________________.
  11. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  12. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  13. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  14. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  15. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  16. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  17. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  18. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  19. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  20. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  21. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  22. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  23. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  24. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a music group
  2. firm — decided
  3. bark — to shout
  4. pop — to visit
  5. bark — a dog's sound
  6. firm — steady
  7. fine — all right
  8. firm — a company
  9. field — a subject
  10. pop — soda
  11. capital — money
  12. field — for sport
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. band — a rubber band
  15. fan — to cool the air
  16. fine — high quality
  17. band — a ring
  18. capital — a city
  19. fine — a penalty
  20. bark — of a tree
  21. capital — a big letter
  22. fan — a supporter
  23. field — farmland
  24. pop — music

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