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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 still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  2. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  3. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  4. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  5. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  6. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  7. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  8. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  9. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  10. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  11. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  12. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  13. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  14. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  15. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  16. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  17. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  18. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  19. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  20. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  21. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  22. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  23. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  24. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. bass — the fish
  3. band — a music group
  4. bat — in an idiom
  5. bat — for baseball
  6. leaves — to go away
  7. drill — army training
  8. object — to protest
  9. bat — the animal
  10. capital — a big letter
  11. bass — low music
  12. capital — a city
  13. band — a rubber band
  14. object — an aim
  15. leaves — lets stay
  16. leaves — of a tree
  17. drill — a practice
  18. toast — the most admired
  19. bass — the instrument
  20. toast — a drink to someone
  21. drill — the tool
  22. toast — bread
  23. capital — money
  24. object — a thing

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