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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: capital · saw · lie · band · ruler · jam · tear · ball

  1. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  2. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  3. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  4. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  5. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  6. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  7. The King held a masked ________________.
  8. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  9. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  10. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  11. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  12. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  13. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  14. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  15. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  16. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  17. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  18. He works in a ________________ mill.
  19. She's very handy with a ________________.
  20. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  21. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  22. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  23. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  24. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a music group
  2. lie — to recline
  3. tear — to rip
  4. ball — a great time
  5. ruler — a monarch
  6. saw — past of 'see'
  7. ball — a dance
  8. jam — a tight spot
  9. band — a rubber band
  10. capital — money
  11. band — a ring
  12. jam — to spread on bread
  13. tear — from crying
  14. capital — a big letter
  15. tear — from crying
  16. ruler — for measuring
  17. ball — a round shape
  18. saw — the tool
  19. saw — the tool
  20. capital — a city
  21. lie — an untruth
  22. lie — an untruth
  23. jam — in traffic
  24. ruler — for measuring

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