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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. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  3. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  4. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  5. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  6. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  7. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  8. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  9. The King held a masked ________________.
  10. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  11. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  12. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  13. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  14. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  15. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  16. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  17. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  18. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  19. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  20. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  21. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  22. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  23. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  24. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a rubber band
  2. bowl — to roll
  3. rock — to move gently
  4. snap — to click
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. snap — to speak sharply
  7. capital — a big letter
  8. snap — to snap out of it
  9. ball — a dance
  10. spring — the season
  11. bowl — a dish
  12. ball — a round shape
  13. fan — to cool the air
  14. band — a ring
  15. capital — money
  16. rock — a stone
  17. capital — a city
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. spring — a coil
  20. band — a music group
  21. spring — of water
  22. bowl — a football final
  23. rock — music
  24. ball — a great time

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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