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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 put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  2. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  3. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  4. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  5. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  6. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  7. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  8. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  9. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  10. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  11. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  12. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  13. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  14. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  15. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  16. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  17. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  18. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  19. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  20. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  21. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  22. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  23. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  24. Have you settled on a ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. band — a rubber band
  2. club — for dancing
  3. date — the fruit
  4. vault — an arched ceiling
  5. file — a line of people
  6. file — a document
  7. mark — a grade
  8. date — on the calendar
  9. vault — a safe
  10. mark — to pay attention
  11. club — for golf
  12. rule — a law
  13. band — a music group
  14. capital — a big letter
  15. capital — money
  16. band — a ring
  17. club — a group
  18. mark — a trace
  19. vault — in gymnastics
  20. rule — to rule out
  21. rule — government
  22. capital — a city
  23. file — a tool
  24. date — on the calendar

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