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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 116 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 play ________________ in a jazz band.
  3. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  4. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  5. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  6. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  7. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  8. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  9. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  10. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  11. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  12. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  13. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  14. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  15. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  16. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  17. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  18. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  19. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  20. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  21. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  22. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  23. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  24. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a rubber band
  2. bass — the instrument
  3. net — in sport
  4. pound — to hit hard
  5. wound — an injury
  6. net — after costs
  7. capital — a city
  8. squash — to crush
  9. wound — an injury
  10. hide — animal skin
  11. wound — past of 'wind'
  12. hide — to keep secret
  13. pound — for dogs
  14. squash — the vegetable
  15. pound — a weight
  16. squash — the sport
  17. band — a ring
  18. hide — to keep secret
  19. bass — the fish
  20. band — a music group
  21. net — for catching
  22. capital — money
  23. bass — low music
  24. capital — a big letter

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