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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: firm · toast · capital · bass · band · tear

  1. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  2. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  3. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  4. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  5. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  6. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  7. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  8. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  9. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  10. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  11. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  12. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  13. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  14. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  15. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  16. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  17. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  18. I play ________________ in a jazz band.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a music group
  2. firm — a company
  3. tear — from crying
  4. bass — low music
  5. capital — money
  6. firm — steady
  7. band — a rubber band
  8. toast — bread
  9. capital — a city
  10. toast — the most admired
  11. toast — a drink to someone
  12. tear — to rip
  13. bass — the fish
  14. band — a ring
  15. tear — from crying
  16. capital — a big letter
  17. firm — decided
  18. bass — the instrument

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