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

Word bank: cap · present · race · firm · last · band

  1. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  2. False peace will not ________________.
  3. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  4. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  5. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  6. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  7. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  8. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  9. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  10. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  11. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  12. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  13. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  14. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  15. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  16. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  17. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  18. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a rubber band
  2. last — to go on
  3. cap — of ice
  4. race — a contest
  5. band — a ring
  6. last — final
  7. present — there
  8. firm — steady
  9. firm — decided
  10. cap — a lid
  11. firm — a company
  12. race — the arms race
  13. present — the time now
  14. cap — a hat
  15. last — finally
  16. race — humankind
  17. present — a gift
  18. band — a music group

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