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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. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  2. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  3. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  6. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  7. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  8. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  9. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  10. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  11. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  12. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  13. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  14. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  15. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  16. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  17. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  18. When was this ________________ built?
  19. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  20. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  21. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  22. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  23. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  24. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a city
  2. band — a rubber band
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. capital — money
  5. temple — a place of worship
  6. band — a music group
  7. pitch — completely
  8. jam — a tight spot
  9. pitch — a sports field
  10. hide — animal skin
  11. capital — a big letter
  12. pitch — a sales talk
  13. jam — to spread on bread
  14. hide — to keep secret
  15. band — a ring
  16. temple — side of the head
  17. wax — for sculpting
  18. temple — a place of worship
  19. fan — to cool the air
  20. wax — in the ear
  21. jam — in traffic
  22. hide — to keep secret
  23. wax — to grow
  24. fan — a supporter

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