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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 116 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: cabinet · band · bat · spell · mouse · track · mug · capital

  1. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  2. What do you think of the new ________________?
  3. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  4. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  5. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  6. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  7. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  8. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  9. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  10. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  11. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  12. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  13. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  14. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  15. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  16. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  17. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  18. Where did you ________________ them?
  19. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  20. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  21. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  22. How do you ________________ your surname?
  23. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  24. He keeps ________________ of his days.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — a short time
  2. cabinet — ministers
  3. cabinet — ministers
  4. band — a ring
  5. band — a music group
  6. band — a rubber band
  7. capital — a big letter
  8. capital — a city
  9. capital — money
  10. bat — the animal
  11. cabinet — a cupboard
  12. track — a song
  13. mug — a cup
  14. mouse — for a computer
  15. bat — for baseball
  16. mug — a face
  17. spell — magic
  18. mug — to rob
  19. track — a path
  20. mouse — the animal
  21. bat — in an idiom
  22. spell — letters
  23. mouse — the animal
  24. track — to keep track

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