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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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 · game · wake · scale · mug · tube · ball · capital

  1. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  2. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  3. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  4. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  5. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  6. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  7. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  8. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  9. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  10. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  11. I'll be taking the ________________.
  12. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  13. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  14. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  15. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  16. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  17. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  18. That was a fun ________________.
  19. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  20. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  21. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  22. The King held a masked ________________.
  23. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  24. Where did you ________________ them?

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a great time
  2. game — a kind of play
  3. band — a music group
  4. capital — a big letter
  5. mug — a cup
  6. band — a rubber band
  7. scale — size or range
  8. game — wild animals
  9. wake — to stop sleeping
  10. mug — a face
  11. tube — the underground
  12. capital — money
  13. scale — for weighing
  14. tube — a container
  15. band — a ring
  16. ball — a round shape
  17. tube — in a tire
  18. game — a match
  19. wake — before a funeral
  20. capital — a city
  21. wake — a trail
  22. ball — a dance
  23. scale — in music
  24. mug — to rob

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