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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 116 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: nail · rock · deal · bark · bear · band · cue · capital

  1. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  2. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  3. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  4. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  5. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  6. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  7. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  8. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  9. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  10. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  11. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  12. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  13. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  14. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  15. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  16. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  17. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  18. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  19. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  20. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  21. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  22. The ________________ went through the wall.
  23. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  24. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — a big deal
  2. band — a rubber band
  3. cue — a hint
  4. deal — to handle
  5. rock — to move gently
  6. capital — money
  7. capital — a city
  8. bear — to put up with
  9. bark — a dog's sound
  10. cue — a signal
  11. nail — on a finger
  12. deal — an agreement
  13. band — a ring
  14. bear — the animal
  15. band — a music group
  16. nail — for a hammer
  17. rock — music
  18. capital — a big letter
  19. bark — of a tree
  20. bear — the animal
  21. cue — for pool
  22. nail — for a hammer
  23. rock — a stone
  24. bark — to shout

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