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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: rash · ground · ball · mark · fan · band · capital · wax

  1. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  2. Don't do anything ________________.
  3. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  4. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  5. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  6. There's no middle ________________.
  7. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  8. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  9. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  10. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  11. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  12. The King held a masked ________________.
  13. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  14. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  15. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  16. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  17. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  18. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  19. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  20. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  21. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  22. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  23. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  24. The kitten curled into a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — to pay attention
  2. rash — hasty
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. ball — a great time
  5. capital — a city
  6. ground — a position
  7. wax — to grow
  8. rash — a series
  9. mark — a grade
  10. ground — crushed
  11. mark — a trace
  12. ball — a dance
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. capital — a big letter
  15. ground — the earth
  16. fan — to cool the air
  17. wax — in the ear
  18. band — a ring
  19. band — a music group
  20. capital — money
  21. rash — on the skin
  22. band — a rubber band
  23. wax — for sculpting
  24. ball — a round shape

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