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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: band · firm · fall · pop · cell · capital

  1. We're almost out of ________________.
  2. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  3. You don't need to ________________ round.
  4. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  5. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  6. He was locked up in a ________________.
  7. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  8. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  9. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  10. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  11. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  12. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  13. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  16. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  17. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  18. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — soda
  2. firm — a company
  3. pop — to visit
  4. band — a ring
  5. cell — in biology
  6. cell — in a prison
  7. capital — a big letter
  8. fall — to drop
  9. band — a music group
  10. firm — decided
  11. cell — a phone
  12. fall — to drop
  13. capital — money
  14. capital — a city
  15. pop — music
  16. band — a rubber band
  17. firm — steady
  18. fall — the season

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