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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. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  2. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  3. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  4. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  5. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  6. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  7. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  8. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  9. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  10. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  11. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  12. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  13. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  14. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  15. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  16. That was a fun ________________.
  17. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  18. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  19. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  20. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  21. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  22. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  23. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  24. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?

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

Answer key

  1. stem — a stem cell
  2. band — a rubber band
  3. capital — a big letter
  4. capital — a city
  5. bank — of a river
  6. band — a ring
  7. bank — for money
  8. fan — to cool the air
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. stem — of a plant
  11. band — a music group
  12. cap — of ice
  13. game — a kind of play
  14. squash — to crush
  15. cap — a hat
  16. game — a match
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. stem — to come from
  19. squash — the sport
  20. squash — the vegetable
  21. capital — money
  22. game — wild animals
  23. bank — for money
  24. cap — a lid

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