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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. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  3. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  4. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  5. That was ________________ to happen.
  6. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  7. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  8. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  9. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  10. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  11. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  12. The King held a masked ________________.
  13. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  14. She's very handy with a ________________.
  15. Did you ________________ the meat?
  16. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  17. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  18. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  19. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  20. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  21. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  22. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  23. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  24. He works in a ________________ mill.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a music group
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. band — a ring
  4. racket — a loud noise
  5. bound — certain
  6. bound — obliged
  7. capital — a city
  8. ball — a round shape
  9. ball — a great time
  10. bass — the fish
  11. capital — a big letter
  12. ball — a dance
  13. bound — tied together
  14. saw — the tool
  15. season — to add flavour
  16. band — a rubber band
  17. season — of the year
  18. bass — the instrument
  19. capital — money
  20. bass — low music
  21. saw — past of 'see'
  22. racket — for tennis
  23. season — in sport
  24. saw — the tool

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