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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: cap · mine · band · stick · net · row · perch · vault

  1. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  2. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  3. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  4. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  5. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  6. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  7. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  8. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  9. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  10. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  11. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  12. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  13. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  14. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  15. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  16. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  17. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  18. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  19. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  20. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  21. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  22. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  23. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  24. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.

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

Answer key

  1. net — for catching
  2. band — a music group
  3. row — a line
  4. band — a ring
  5. mine — belonging to me
  6. row — a quarrel
  7. net — after costs
  8. vault — an arched ceiling
  9. band — a rubber band
  10. cap — of ice
  11. net — in sport
  12. row — to paddle
  13. mine — an explosive
  14. vault — a safe
  15. cap — a lid
  16. vault — in gymnastics
  17. mine — for digging
  18. stick — a piece of wood
  19. stick — a piece of wood
  20. perch — the fish
  21. stick — to attach or keep to
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. cap — a hat

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