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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. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  3. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  4. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  5. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  6. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  7. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  8. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  9. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  10. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  11. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  12. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  13. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  14. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  15. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  16. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  17. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  18. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  19. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  20. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  21. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  22. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  23. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  24. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a rubber band
  2. capital — money
  3. wound — an injury
  4. band — a music group
  5. wound — an injury
  6. wake — to stop sleeping
  7. capital — a city
  8. band — a ring
  9. shower — to wash
  10. craft — a skill
  11. can — a tin
  12. shower — a meteor shower
  13. calf — of the leg
  14. wake — a trail
  15. craft — a handicraft
  16. wake — before a funeral
  17. shower — rain
  18. calf — a young animal
  19. wound — past of 'wind'
  20. can — a tin
  21. can — to be able to
  22. calf — a young animal
  23. capital — a big letter
  24. craft — boats

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