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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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: capital · stand · band · row · dip · bulb

  1. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  2. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  3. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  4. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  5. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  6. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  7. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  8. I can't ________________ this cold.
  9. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  10. The light ________________ burned out.
  11. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  12. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  13. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  14. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  15. I've got to change the light ________________.
  16. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  17. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  18. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a music group
  2. row — a quarrel
  3. bulb — of a plant
  4. dip — to sink
  5. capital — money
  6. band — a ring
  7. capital — a big letter
  8. stand — to bear
  9. dip — a sauce
  10. bulb — for light
  11. row — to paddle
  12. band — a rubber band
  13. dip — to dunk
  14. stand — for spectators
  15. bulb — for light
  16. capital — a city
  17. row — a line
  18. stand — on your feet

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