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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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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 still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  2. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  4. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  5. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  6. That was ________________ to happen.
  7. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  8. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  9. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  10. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  11. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  12. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  13. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  14. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  15. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  16. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  17. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  18. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  19. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  20. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  21. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  22. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  23. Have you settled on a ________________?
  24. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. capital — a big letter
  3. capital — a city
  4. pitch — a sales talk
  5. dip — to sink
  6. bound — certain
  7. date — the fruit
  8. dip — a sauce
  9. race — the arms race
  10. bound — tied together
  11. vault — in gymnastics
  12. pitch — completely
  13. date — on the calendar
  14. pitch — a sports field
  15. bound — obliged
  16. vault — a safe
  17. dip — to dunk
  18. band — a rubber band
  19. capital — money
  20. vault — an arched ceiling
  21. race — humankind
  22. band — a music group
  23. date — on the calendar
  24. race — a contest

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