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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.

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: ball · band · game · rash · cabinet · hand · object · capital

  1. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  2. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  3. What do you think of the new ________________?
  4. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  5. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  6. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  7. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  8. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  9. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  10. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  11. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  12. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  13. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  14. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  15. Don't do anything ________________.
  16. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  17. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  18. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  19. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  20. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  21. That was a fun ________________.
  22. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  23. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  24. The King held a masked ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — help
  2. object — a thing
  3. cabinet — ministers
  4. game — wild animals
  5. cabinet — a cupboard
  6. object — an aim
  7. hand — part of the body
  8. rash — on the skin
  9. game — a kind of play
  10. object — to protest
  11. capital — a city
  12. hand — in cards
  13. capital — a big letter
  14. ball — a round shape
  15. rash — hasty
  16. band — a rubber band
  17. band — a ring
  18. band — a music group
  19. capital — money
  20. rash — a series
  21. game — a match
  22. cabinet — ministers
  23. ball — a great time
  24. ball — a dance

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