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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: mine · foot · cap · band · net · firm · drill · march

  1. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  2. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  3. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  4. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  5. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  6. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  7. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  8. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  9. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  10. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  11. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  12. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  13. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  14. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  15. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  16. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  17. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  18. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  19. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  20. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  21. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  22. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  23. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  24. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — belonging to me
  2. band — a music group
  3. drill — a practice
  4. firm — decided
  5. drill — the tool
  6. cap — of ice
  7. march — music
  8. foot — part of the body
  9. march — the month
  10. mine — for digging
  11. net — after costs
  12. drill — army training
  13. firm — steady
  14. march — the month
  15. foot — a measure
  16. firm — a company
  17. cap — a lid
  18. band — a ring
  19. foot — the bottom
  20. net — for catching
  21. mine — an explosive
  22. net — in sport
  23. band — a rubber band
  24. cap — a hat

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