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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. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  2. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  3. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  4. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  5. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  6. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  7. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  8. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  9. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  10. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  11. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  12. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  13. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  14. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  15. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  16. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  17. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  18. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  19. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  20. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  21. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  22. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  23. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  24. He was locked up in a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — the instrument
  2. cell — a phone
  3. club — a group
  4. capital — a big letter
  5. bat — in an idiom
  6. bank — for money
  7. band — a rubber band
  8. bass — the fish
  9. bank — for money
  10. mine — belonging to me
  11. club — for dancing
  12. cell — in biology
  13. mine — an explosive
  14. mine — for digging
  15. capital — money
  16. band — a ring
  17. capital — a city
  18. club — for golf
  19. bat — the animal
  20. bank — of a river
  21. bass — low music
  22. bat — for baseball
  23. band — a music group
  24. cell — in a prison

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