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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. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  3. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  6. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  7. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  8. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  9. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  10. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  11. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  12. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  13. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  14. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  15. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  16. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  17. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  18. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  19. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  20. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  21. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  22. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  23. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  24. Beijing is the ________________ of China.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a rubber band
  2. squash — the vegetable
  3. lean — thin
  4. capital — money
  5. wound — past of 'wind'
  6. bore — to drill
  7. perch — the fish
  8. bore — to tire
  9. capital — a big letter
  10. wound — an injury
  11. squash — the sport
  12. mouse — for a computer
  13. wound — an injury
  14. band — a ring
  15. lean — to bend
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. band — a music group
  18. bore — gave birth
  19. mouse — the animal
  20. squash — to crush
  21. mouse — the animal
  22. lean — to rest against
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. capital — a city

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