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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. You don't need to ________________ round.
  2. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  3. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  6. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  7. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  8. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  9. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  10. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  11. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  12. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  13. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  14. We're almost out of ________________.
  15. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  16. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  17. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  18. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  19. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  20. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  21. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  22. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  23. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  24. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — to visit
  2. rock — music
  3. bank — for money
  4. capital — money
  5. racket — for tennis
  6. rock — a stone
  7. capital — a big letter
  8. pop — music
  9. racket — a loud noise
  10. band — a ring
  11. band — a music group
  12. bat — in an idiom
  13. current — happening now
  14. pop — soda
  15. band — a rubber band
  16. rock — to move gently
  17. racket — for tennis
  18. bank — of a river
  19. current — of water
  20. current — electric
  21. bat — for baseball
  22. capital — a city
  23. bat — the animal
  24. bank — for money

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