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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 still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  2. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  3. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  4. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  5. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  6. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  7. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  8. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  9. My father caught me by the ________________.
  10. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  11. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  12. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  13. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  14. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  15. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  16. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  17. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  18. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  19. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  20. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  21. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  22. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  23. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  24. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. wake — to stop sleeping
  3. wake — before a funeral
  4. bass — the fish
  5. band — a rubber band
  6. root — of a word
  7. capital — a city
  8. wake — a trail
  9. arm — part of the body
  10. root — of a plant
  11. capital — a big letter
  12. patient — calm and waiting
  13. squash — the sport
  14. squash — the vegetable
  15. arm — a part of something
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. arm — part of the body
  18. capital — money
  19. squash — to crush
  20. bass — low music
  21. bass — the instrument
  22. band — a music group
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. root — the cause

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