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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 put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  2. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  3. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  4. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  5. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  6. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  7. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  8. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  9. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  10. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  11. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  12. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  13. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  14. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  15. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  16. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  17. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  18. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  19. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  20. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  21. The ________________ took off on time.
  22. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  23. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  24. This piece is in a major ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a rubber band
  2. chest — of your body
  3. capital — a big letter
  4. band — a ring
  5. band — a music group
  6. net — in sport
  7. capital — a city
  8. net — for catching
  9. calf — a young animal
  10. chest — of your body
  11. mark — to pay attention
  12. capital — money
  13. calf — of the leg
  14. net — after costs
  15. calf — a young animal
  16. mark — a grade
  17. plane — a tool
  18. mark — a trace
  19. plane — in geometry
  20. key — for a lock
  21. plane — an aircraft
  22. chest — a box
  23. key — the most important part
  24. key — in 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