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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.

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: pop · rest · mouse · band · capital · racket · mine · net

  1. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  2. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  3. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  4. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  5. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  6. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  7. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  8. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  9. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  10. We're almost out of ________________.
  11. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  12. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  13. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  14. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  15. You don't need to ________________ round.
  16. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  17. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  18. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  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. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  22. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  23. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  24. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a big letter
  2. net — after costs
  3. capital — a city
  4. band — a rubber band
  5. net — for catching
  6. racket — for tennis
  7. racket — for tennis
  8. rest — a break
  9. band — a ring
  10. pop — soda
  11. mouse — for a computer
  12. mouse — the animal
  13. mine — for digging
  14. racket — a loud noise
  15. pop — to visit
  16. mine — an explosive
  17. pop — music
  18. capital — money
  19. rest — what's left
  20. rest — what's left
  21. net — in sport
  22. band — a music group
  23. mine — belonging to me
  24. mouse — the animal

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