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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. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  3. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  4. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  5. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  6. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  7. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  8. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  9. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  10. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  11. The ________________ took off on time.
  12. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  13. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  14. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  15. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  16. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  17. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  18. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  19. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  20. He was locked up in a ________________.
  21. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  22. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  23. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  24. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a rubber band
  2. chair — a professorship
  3. cell — in biology
  4. capital — a big letter
  5. cell — a phone
  6. plane — in geometry
  7. band — a ring
  8. degree — temperature
  9. chair — a leader
  10. degree — from a university
  11. plane — an aircraft
  12. chair — to sit on
  13. capital — a city
  14. lie — an untruth
  15. band — a music group
  16. degree — an amount
  17. plane — a tool
  18. board — a flat piece
  19. capital — money
  20. cell — in a prison
  21. lie — an untruth
  22. lie — to recline
  23. board — a committee
  24. board — to get on

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