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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 116 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. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  3. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  4. Did you ________________ the button?
  5. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  6. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  7. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  8. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  9. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  10. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  11. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  12. What do you think of the new ________________?
  13. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  14. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  15. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  16. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  17. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  18. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  19. The ball is in your ________________.
  20. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  21. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  22. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  23. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  24. Beijing is the ________________ of China.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a rubber band
  2. band — a ring
  3. capital — a big letter
  4. press — to push
  5. wax — in the ear
  6. capital — money
  7. patient — calm and waiting
  8. wax — to grow
  9. cabinet — ministers
  10. press — a publisher
  11. band — a music group
  12. cabinet — ministers
  13. craft — a skill
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. craft — a handicraft
  16. press — newspapers
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. wax — for sculpting
  19. court — for sport
  20. craft — boats
  21. cabinet — a cupboard
  22. court — of a king
  23. court — of law
  24. capital — a city

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