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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: safe · game · current · sharp · cell · band · capital · pop

  1. You don't need to ________________ round.
  2. It's one o'clock ________________.
  3. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  4. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  5. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  6. We're almost out of ________________.
  7. That was a fun ________________.
  8. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  9. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  10. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  11. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  12. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  13. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  14. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  15. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  16. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  17. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  18. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  19. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  20. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  21. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  22. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  23. He was locked up in a ________________.
  24. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!

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

Answer key

  1. pop — to visit
  2. sharp — exactly
  3. band — a music group
  4. cell — in biology
  5. band — a rubber band
  6. pop — soda
  7. game — a match
  8. capital — money
  9. capital — a city
  10. current — of water
  11. current — happening now
  12. safe — out of danger
  13. safe — out of danger
  14. sharp — clever
  15. game — wild animals
  16. safe — a strongbox
  17. capital — a big letter
  18. pop — music
  19. band — a ring
  20. game — a kind of play
  21. sharp — with an edge
  22. current — electric
  23. cell — in a prison
  24. cell — a phone

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