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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 116 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. We're almost out of ________________.
  3. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  4. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  5. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  6. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  7. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  8. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  9. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  10. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  11. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  12. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  13. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  14. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  15. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  16. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  17. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  18. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  19. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  20. You don't need to ________________ round.
  21. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  22. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  23. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  24. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a music group
  2. pop — soda
  3. face — to point toward
  4. staff — a stick
  5. staff — employees
  6. ruler — a monarch
  7. row — a line
  8. ruler — for measuring
  9. band — a ring
  10. ruler — for measuring
  11. pop — music
  12. face — to confront
  13. band — a rubber band
  14. capital — money
  15. row — a quarrel
  16. face — part of the head
  17. capital — a big letter
  18. row — to paddle
  19. capital — a city
  20. pop — to visit
  21. stick — a piece of wood
  22. staff — employees
  23. stick — to attach or keep to
  24. stick — a piece of wood

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