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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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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: jam · fine · tube · band · bark · ball · last · capital

  1. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  2. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  3. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  4. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  5. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  6. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  7. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  8. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  9. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  10. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  11. I'll be taking the ________________.
  12. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  13. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  14. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  15. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  16. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  17. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  18. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  19. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  20. The King held a masked ________________.
  21. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  22. False peace will not ________________.
  23. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  24. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — in a tire
  2. last — finally
  3. capital — a big letter
  4. band — a rubber band
  5. last — final
  6. jam — to spread on bread
  7. capital — a city
  8. jam — in traffic
  9. tube — a container
  10. bark — of a tree
  11. tube — the underground
  12. bark — a dog's sound
  13. fine — a penalty
  14. fine — all right
  15. band — a music group
  16. fine — high quality
  17. jam — a tight spot
  18. capital — money
  19. ball — a round shape
  20. ball — a dance
  21. band — a ring
  22. last — to go on
  23. ball — a great time
  24. bark — to shout

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