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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 put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  2. That was ________________ to happen.
  3. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  4. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  5. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  6. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  7. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  8. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  9. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  10. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  11. Where did you ________________ them?
  12. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  13. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  14. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  15. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  16. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  17. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  18. Don't do anything ________________.
  19. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  20. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  21. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  22. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  23. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  24. He refilled his coffee ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a rubber band
  2. bound — certain
  3. capital — a big letter
  4. band — a music group
  5. trunk — of a car
  6. rash — a series
  7. bear — the animal
  8. degree — an amount
  9. bear — the animal
  10. trunk — of a tree
  11. mug — to rob
  12. band — a ring
  13. capital — money
  14. degree — temperature
  15. bear — to put up with
  16. mug — a face
  17. bound — obliged
  18. rash — hasty
  19. bound — tied together
  20. degree — from a university
  21. capital — a city
  22. trunk — of an elephant
  23. rash — on the skin
  24. mug — a cup

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