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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: kid · present · band · wax · capital · key · firm · bank

  1. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  2. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  3. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  4. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  5. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  6. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  7. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  8. This piece is in a major ________________.
  9. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  10. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  11. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  12. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  13. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  14. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  15. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  16. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  17. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  18. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  19. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  20. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  21. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  22. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  23. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  24. Beijing is the ________________ of China.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — child
  2. wax — in the ear
  3. kid — to tease
  4. wax — to grow
  5. capital — money
  6. capital — a big letter
  7. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  8. key — in music
  9. band — a rubber band
  10. wax — for sculpting
  11. key — the most important part
  12. present — the time now
  13. firm — steady
  14. present — a gift
  15. present — there
  16. firm — decided
  17. bank — of a river
  18. key — for a lock
  19. band — a ring
  20. band — a music group
  21. firm — a company
  22. bank — for money
  23. bank — for money
  24. capital — a city

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