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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. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  3. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  4. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  5. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  6. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  7. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  8. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  9. Don't do anything ________________.
  10. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  11. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  12. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  13. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  14. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  15. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  16. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  17. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  18. When will it ________________ you to start?
  19. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  20. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  21. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  22. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  23. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  24. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a city
  2. firm — decided
  3. mine — an explosive
  4. band — a ring
  5. rash — on the skin
  6. firm — a company
  7. mine — for digging
  8. drill — the tool
  9. rash — hasty
  10. mine — belonging to me
  11. deal — to handle
  12. band — a rubber band
  13. capital — money
  14. suit — in cards
  15. deal — a big deal
  16. drill — army training
  17. suit — clothes
  18. suit — to fit
  19. rash — a series
  20. drill — a practice
  21. band — a music group
  22. firm — steady
  23. deal — an agreement
  24. capital — a big letter

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