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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. He was locked up in a ________________.
  2. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  3. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  6. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  7. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  8. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  9. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  10. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  11. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  12. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  13. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  14. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  15. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  16. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  17. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  18. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  19. False peace will not ________________.
  20. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  21. There's no middle ________________.
  22. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  23. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  24. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in a prison
  2. fork — in a road
  3. band — a ring
  4. capital — money
  5. lie — an untruth
  6. last — final
  7. cell — a phone
  8. last — finally
  9. cell — in biology
  10. ground — crushed
  11. fork — to eat with
  12. lie — to recline
  13. ground — the earth
  14. lie — an untruth
  15. content — videos and posts
  16. band — a rubber band
  17. capital — a big letter
  18. content — happy
  19. last — to go on
  20. fork — a garden tool
  21. ground — a position
  22. capital — a city
  23. content — the amount
  24. band — a music group

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