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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 still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  2. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  4. The ________________ took off on time.
  5. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  6. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  7. That was a fun ________________.
  8. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  9. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  10. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  11. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  12. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  13. Did you ________________ the button?
  14. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  15. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  16. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  17. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  18. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  19. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  20. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  21. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  22. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  23. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  24. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. capital — a big letter
  3. rest — a break
  4. plane — an aircraft
  5. squash — the vegetable
  6. squash — the sport
  7. game — a match
  8. press — newspapers
  9. game — wild animals
  10. rest — what's left
  11. capital — a city
  12. safe — a strongbox
  13. press — to push
  14. press — a publisher
  15. rest — what's left
  16. band — a rubber band
  17. squash — to crush
  18. safe — out of danger
  19. safe — out of danger
  20. game — a kind of play
  21. band — a music group
  22. plane — in geometry
  23. capital — money
  24. plane — a tool

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