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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 girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  2. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  3. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  4. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  5. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  6. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  7. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  8. This piece is in a major ________________.
  9. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  10. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  11. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  12. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  13. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  14. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  15. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  16. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  17. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  18. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  19. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  20. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  21. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  22. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  23. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  24. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a line
  2. bass — the fish
  3. capital — a city
  4. key — the most important part
  5. bore — gave birth
  6. bore — to drill
  7. band — a ring
  8. key — in music
  9. bass — the instrument
  10. key — for a lock
  11. row — a quarrel
  12. march — the month
  13. bass — low music
  14. row — to paddle
  15. band — a music group
  16. capital — money
  17. calf — a young animal
  18. capital — a big letter
  19. march — the month
  20. bore — to tire
  21. march — music
  22. band — a rubber band
  23. calf — of the leg
  24. calf — a young animal

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