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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: band · wake · trunk · capital · branch · pop · stand · season

  1. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  2. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  3. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  4. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  5. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  6. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  7. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  8. Did you ________________ the meat?
  9. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  10. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  11. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  12. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  13. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  14. We're almost out of ________________.
  15. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  16. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  17. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  18. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  19. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  20. You don't need to ________________ round.
  21. I can't ________________ this cold.
  22. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  23. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  24. I've got the luggage in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — music
  2. capital — a city
  3. capital — a big letter
  4. trunk — of a tree
  5. wake — a trail
  6. capital — money
  7. branch — of a bank
  8. season — to add flavour
  9. wake — before a funeral
  10. branch — a division
  11. trunk — of an elephant
  12. band — a rubber band
  13. stand — on your feet
  14. pop — soda
  15. branch — of a tree
  16. wake — to stop sleeping
  17. season — of the year
  18. band — a music group
  19. season — in sport
  20. pop — to visit
  21. stand — to bear
  22. stand — for spectators
  23. band — a ring
  24. trunk — of a car

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