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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: content · craft · staff · band · cap · tear

  1. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  2. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  3. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  4. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  5. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  6. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  7. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  8. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  9. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  10. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  11. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  12. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  13. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  14. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  15. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  16. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  17. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  18. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?

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

Answer key

  1. staff — a stick
  2. band — a ring
  3. cap — a hat
  4. tear — from crying
  5. content — happy
  6. band — a music group
  7. cap — of ice
  8. staff — employees
  9. content — the amount
  10. craft — a handicraft
  11. staff — employees
  12. craft — boats
  13. craft — a skill
  14. content — videos and posts
  15. tear — from crying
  16. band — a rubber band
  17. tear — to rip
  18. cap — a lid

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