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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. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  2. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  3. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  4. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  5. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  6. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  7. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  8. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  9. Have you met the new head ________________?
  10. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  11. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  12. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  13. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  14. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  15. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  16. The ________________ went through the wall.
  17. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  18. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  19. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  20. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  21. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  22. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  23. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  24. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — of water
  2. coach — pulled by horses
  3. nail — on a finger
  4. band — a ring
  5. capital — a city
  6. ruler — a monarch
  7. capital — a big letter
  8. race — a contest
  9. coach — a trainer
  10. ruler — for measuring
  11. spring — a coil
  12. pound — a weight
  13. spring — the season
  14. ruler — for measuring
  15. nail — for a hammer
  16. nail — for a hammer
  17. race — humankind
  18. pound — to hit hard
  19. band — a music group
  20. race — the arms race
  21. pound — for dogs
  22. coach — a trainer
  23. capital — money
  24. band — a rubber band

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