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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. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  2. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  3. He works in a ________________ mill.
  4. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  5. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  6. The ________________ took off on time.
  7. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  8. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  9. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  10. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  11. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  12. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  13. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  14. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  15. She's very handy with a ________________.
  16. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  17. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  18. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  19. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  20. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  21. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  22. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  23. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  24. She got the top ________________ in the exam.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — money
  2. band — a ring
  3. saw — the tool
  4. spring — the season
  5. capital — a city
  6. plane — an aircraft
  7. snap — to speak sharply
  8. mark — a trace
  9. spring — a coil
  10. racket — a loud noise
  11. mark — to pay attention
  12. capital — a big letter
  13. band — a rubber band
  14. spring — of water
  15. saw — the tool
  16. saw — past of 'see'
  17. plane — in geometry
  18. snap — to click
  19. snap — to snap out of it
  20. plane — a tool
  21. band — a music group
  22. racket — for tennis
  23. racket — for tennis
  24. mark — a grade

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