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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. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  2. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  3. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  4. We're almost out of ________________.
  5. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  6. That was ________________ to happen.
  7. Have you met the new head ________________?
  8. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  9. You don't need to ________________ round.
  10. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  11. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  12. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  13. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  14. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  15. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  16. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  17. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  18. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  19. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  20. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  21. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  22. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  23. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  24. He keeps ________________ of his days.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — to eat with
  2. fine — all right
  3. fine — a penalty
  4. pop — soda
  5. coach — pulled by horses
  6. bound — certain
  7. coach — a trainer
  8. capital — a big letter
  9. pop — to visit
  10. capital — money
  11. band — a rubber band
  12. fine — high quality
  13. band — a music group
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. pop — music
  16. track — a song
  17. track — a path
  18. fork — a garden tool
  19. capital — a city
  20. bound — obliged
  21. band — a ring
  22. fork — in a road
  23. bound — tied together
  24. track — to keep track

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