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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. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  2. You don't need to ________________ round.
  3. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  4. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  5. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  6. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  7. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  8. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  9. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  10. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  11. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  12. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  13. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  14. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  15. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  16. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  17. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  18. When was this ________________ built?
  19. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  20. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  21. We're almost out of ________________.
  22. The tickets are free of ________________.
  23. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  24. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a music group
  2. pop — to visit
  3. bat — in an idiom
  4. band — a ring
  5. rule — government
  6. capital — a city
  7. temple — a place of worship
  8. bat — for baseball
  9. march — the month
  10. band — a rubber band
  11. rule — to rule out
  12. charge — electricity
  13. pop — music
  14. capital — a big letter
  15. capital — money
  16. march — music
  17. march — the month
  18. temple — a place of worship
  19. bat — the animal
  20. rule — a law
  21. pop — soda
  22. charge — a price
  23. charge — in control
  24. temple — side of the head

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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