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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: arm · capital · wake · season · band · cap · clip · toast

  1. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  2. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  3. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  4. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  5. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  6. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  7. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  8. Did you ________________ the meat?
  9. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  10. My father caught me by the ________________.
  11. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  12. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  13. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  14. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  15. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  16. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  17. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  18. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  19. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  20. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  21. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  22. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  23. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  24. Beijing is the ________________ of China.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a rubber band
  2. arm — a part of something
  3. arm — part of the body
  4. cap — a hat
  5. cap — of ice
  6. wake — before a funeral
  7. clip — a video
  8. season — to add flavour
  9. toast — the most admired
  10. arm — part of the body
  11. band — a ring
  12. wake — a trail
  13. clip — for paper
  14. cap — a lid
  15. capital — money
  16. season — in sport
  17. toast — bread
  18. toast — a drink to someone
  19. clip — to cut
  20. band — a music group
  21. capital — a big letter
  22. season — of the year
  23. wake — to stop sleeping
  24. capital — a city

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