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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. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  2. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  3. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  4. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  5. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  6. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  7. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  8. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  9. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  10. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  11. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  12. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  13. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  14. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  15. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  16. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  17. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  18. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  19. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  20. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  21. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  22. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  23. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  24. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a big letter
  2. chip — in a computer
  3. wax — to grow
  4. bass — the fish
  5. hand — in cards
  6. capital — money
  7. band — a music group
  8. capital — a city
  9. bass — the instrument
  10. chip — to eat
  11. tear — from crying
  12. wax — in the ear
  13. band — a rubber band
  14. pitch — a sales talk
  15. pitch — a sports field
  16. hand — part of the body
  17. hand — help
  18. chip — for betting
  19. bass — low music
  20. band — a ring
  21. tear — from crying
  22. pitch — completely
  23. wax — for sculpting
  24. tear — to rip

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