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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: stand · capital · band · bass · mug · mate · foot · hand

  1. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  2. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  3. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  4. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  5. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  6. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  7. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  8. Where did you ________________ them?
  9. I can't ________________ this cold.
  10. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  11. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  12. Have you found your soul ________________?
  13. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  14. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  15. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  16. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  17. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  18. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  19. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  20. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  21. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  22. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  23. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  24. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.

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

Answer key

  1. foot — the bottom
  2. band — a music group
  3. mug — a cup
  4. capital — a big letter
  5. mate — to breed
  6. bass — the fish
  7. capital — a city
  8. mug — to rob
  9. stand — to bear
  10. hand — help
  11. bass — low music
  12. mate — a partner
  13. capital — money
  14. hand — part of the body
  15. foot — a measure
  16. mug — a face
  17. mate — a friend
  18. band — a rubber band
  19. foot — part of the body
  20. bass — the instrument
  21. band — a ring
  22. hand — in cards
  23. stand — for spectators
  24. stand — on your feet

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