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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.

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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: rest · stock · band · leaves · tube · hand · squash · capital

  1. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  2. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  3. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  4. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  5. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  6. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  7. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  8. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  9. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  10. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  11. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  12. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  13. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  14. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  15. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  16. The ________________ market has crashed.
  17. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  18. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  19. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  20. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  21. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  22. I'll be taking the ________________.
  23. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  24. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a big letter
  2. rest — what's left
  3. tube — in a tire
  4. squash — to crush
  5. capital — money
  6. band — a music group
  7. rest — a break
  8. hand — in cards
  9. band — a rubber band
  10. leaves — of a tree
  11. squash — the sport
  12. band — a ring
  13. capital — a city
  14. hand — part of the body
  15. stock — a soup base
  16. stock — shares
  17. rest — what's left
  18. leaves — to go away
  19. stock — goods
  20. hand — help
  21. leaves — lets stay
  22. tube — the underground
  23. squash — the vegetable
  24. tube — a container

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