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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 120 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: mine · rest · capital · can · safe · pound · band · kick

  1. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  2. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  3. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  4. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  5. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  6. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  7. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  8. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  9. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  10. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  11. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  12. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  13. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  14. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  15. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  16. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  17. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  18. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  19. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  20. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  21. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  22. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  23. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  24. Recycle the empty soda ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — for digging
  2. safe — out of danger
  3. capital — a big letter
  4. safe — a strongbox
  5. kick — a thrill
  6. mine — belonging to me
  7. safe — out of danger
  8. rest — a break
  9. kick — in football
  10. pound — a weight
  11. capital — a city
  12. band — a rubber band
  13. pound — to hit hard
  14. can — to be able to
  15. pound — for dogs
  16. can — a tin
  17. kick — with a leg
  18. band — a music group
  19. rest — what's left
  20. rest — what's left
  21. band — a ring
  22. mine — an explosive
  23. capital — money
  24. can — a tin

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