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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: capital · band · bay · ball · court · race · mine · pop

  1. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  2. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  3. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  4. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  5. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  6. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  7. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  8. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  9. We're almost out of ________________.
  10. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  11. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  12. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  13. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  14. My mare is ________________ in color.
  15. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  16. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  17. You don't need to ________________ round.
  18. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  19. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  20. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  21. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  22. The ball is in your ________________.
  23. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  24. The King held a masked ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — an explosive
  2. mine — for digging
  3. band — a rubber band
  4. race — humankind
  5. capital — money
  6. bay — to keep at bay
  7. capital — a big letter
  8. band — a music group
  9. pop — soda
  10. race — the arms race
  11. pop — music
  12. band — a ring
  13. mine — belonging to me
  14. bay — a horse colour
  15. capital — a city
  16. court — of law
  17. pop — to visit
  18. ball — a great time
  19. bay — a part of the sea
  20. court — of a king
  21. race — a contest
  22. court — for sport
  23. ball — a round shape
  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