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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: band · tear · capital · bank · racket · face

  1. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  2. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  3. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  4. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  5. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  6. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  7. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  8. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  9. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  10. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  11. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  12. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  13. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  14. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  15. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  16. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  17. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  18. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. capital — money
  3. bank — for money
  4. racket — for tennis
  5. face — to point toward
  6. tear — from crying
  7. capital — a city
  8. face — part of the head
  9. face — to confront
  10. tear — from crying
  11. racket — a loud noise
  12. bank — for money
  13. band — a rubber band
  14. racket — for tennis
  15. capital — a big letter
  16. band — a music group
  17. bank — of a river
  18. tear — to rip

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