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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's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  2. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  3. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  4. The ball is in your ________________.
  5. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  6. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  7. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  8. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  9. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  10. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  11. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  12. He is an ace ________________.
  13. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  14. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  15. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  16. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  17. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  18. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  19. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  20. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  21. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  22. The ________________ market has crashed.
  23. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  24. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a music group
  2. cue — a hint
  3. stock — a soup base
  4. court — for sport
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. safe — out of danger
  7. safe — a strongbox
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. capital — a big letter
  10. cue — a signal
  11. band — a rubber band
  12. pitcher — in baseball
  13. court — of law
  14. wave — a sudden rise
  15. safe — out of danger
  16. capital — money
  17. wave — of the sea
  18. court — of a king
  19. wave — with your hand
  20. cue — for pool
  21. band — a ring
  22. stock — shares
  23. capital — a city
  24. stock — goods

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