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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. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  2. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  3. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  4. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  5. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  6. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  7. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  8. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  9. The ________________ went through the wall.
  10. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  11. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  12. I can't ________________ this cold.
  13. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  14. The King held a masked ________________.
  15. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  16. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  17. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  18. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  19. The ________________ market has crashed.
  20. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  21. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  22. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  23. Have you settled on a ________________?
  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 music group
  2. kid — to tease
  3. stand — on your feet
  4. stock — a soup base
  5. date — the fruit
  6. nail — for a hammer
  7. band — a ring
  8. nail — on a finger
  9. nail — for a hammer
  10. stand — for spectators
  11. ball — a great time
  12. stand — to bear
  13. kid — child
  14. ball — a dance
  15. band — a rubber band
  16. capital — money
  17. ball — a round shape
  18. capital — a big letter
  19. stock — shares
  20. date — on the calendar
  21. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  22. stock — goods
  23. date — on the calendar
  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