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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. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  2. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  3. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  4. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  5. False peace will not ________________.
  6. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  7. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  8. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  9. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  10. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  11. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  12. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  13. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  14. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  15. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  16. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  17. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  18. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  19. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  20. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  21. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  22. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  23. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  24. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.

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

Answer key

  1. firm — a company
  2. band — a music group
  3. capital — a big letter
  4. mark — a trace
  5. last — to go on
  6. last — final
  7. wound — an injury
  8. bark — to shout
  9. last — finally
  10. lie — an untruth
  11. capital — a city
  12. bark — a dog's sound
  13. firm — decided
  14. mark — to pay attention
  15. firm — steady
  16. wound — past of 'wind'
  17. band — a ring
  18. band — a rubber band
  19. mark — a grade
  20. lie — an untruth
  21. capital — money
  22. lie — to recline
  23. bark — of a tree
  24. wound — an injury

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