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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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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: bay · capital · band · key · file · drill · root · kid

  1. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  2. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  3. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  4. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  5. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  6. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  7. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  8. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  9. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  10. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  11. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  12. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  13. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  14. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  15. This piece is in a major ________________.
  16. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  17. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  18. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  19. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  20. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  21. My mare is ________________ in color.
  22. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  23. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  24. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  2. key — for a lock
  3. drill — army training
  4. band — a rubber band
  5. capital — money
  6. file — a tool
  7. root — of a plant
  8. capital — a big letter
  9. band — a music group
  10. kid — to tease
  11. root — of a word
  12. capital — a city
  13. kid — child
  14. key — the most important part
  15. key — in music
  16. bay — to keep at bay
  17. file — a line of people
  18. root — the cause
  19. bay — a part of the sea
  20. drill — a practice
  21. bay — a horse colour
  22. file — a document
  23. band — a ring
  24. drill — the tool

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