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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 120 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's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  2. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  3. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  4. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  5. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  6. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  7. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  8. That was a fun ________________.
  9. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  10. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  11. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  12. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  13. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  14. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  15. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  16. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  17. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  18. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  19. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  20. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  21. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  22. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  23. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  24. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a music group
  2. club — a group
  3. capital — a big letter
  4. vault — in gymnastics
  5. vault — an arched ceiling
  6. vault — a safe
  7. capital — a city
  8. game — a match
  9. squash — the vegetable
  10. club — for golf
  11. game — a kind of play
  12. hand — help
  13. hand — part of the body
  14. squash — the sport
  15. root — of a word
  16. game — wild animals
  17. root — of a plant
  18. band — a rubber band
  19. squash — to crush
  20. hand — in cards
  21. band — a ring
  22. root — the cause
  23. club — for dancing
  24. capital — money

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