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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 still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  2. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  3. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  4. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  5. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  6. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  7. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  8. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  9. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  10. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  11. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  12. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  13. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  14. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  15. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  16. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  17. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  18. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  19. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  20. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  21. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  22. That was ________________ to happen.
  23. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  24. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. band — a music group
  3. bound — tied together
  4. foot — part of the body
  5. fine — a penalty
  6. pound — to hit hard
  7. band — a rubber band
  8. fine — high quality
  9. capital — a city
  10. fine — all right
  11. bound — obliged
  12. foot — the bottom
  13. board — a committee
  14. ruler — a monarch
  15. foot — a measure
  16. board — a flat piece
  17. capital — money
  18. capital — a big letter
  19. board — to get on
  20. ruler — for measuring
  21. ruler — for measuring
  22. bound — certain
  23. pound — for dogs
  24. pound — a weight

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