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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. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  3. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  4. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  5. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  6. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  7. He works in a ________________ mill.
  8. There's no middle ________________.
  9. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  10. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  11. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  12. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  13. The ________________ went through the wall.
  14. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  15. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  16. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  17. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  18. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  19. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  20. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  21. She's very handy with a ________________.
  22. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  23. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  24. I can't ________________ this cold.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a music group
  2. ground — the earth
  3. kid — child
  4. stand — for spectators
  5. nail — for a hammer
  6. race — a contest
  7. saw — the tool
  8. ground — a position
  9. band — a ring
  10. capital — money
  11. capital — a city
  12. band — a rubber band
  13. nail — for a hammer
  14. saw — past of 'see'
  15. ground — crushed
  16. race — the arms race
  17. race — humankind
  18. nail — on a finger
  19. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  20. capital — a big letter
  21. saw — the tool
  22. kid — to tease
  23. stand — on your feet
  24. stand — to bear

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