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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.

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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 · content · capital · bore · stick · ruler · bass · cell

  1. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  2. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  3. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  4. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  5. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  6. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  7. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  8. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  9. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  10. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  11. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  12. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  13. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  14. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  15. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  16. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  17. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  18. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  19. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  20. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  21. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  22. He was locked up in a ________________.
  23. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  24. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — the instrument
  2. band — a ring
  3. bore — to drill
  4. band — a music group
  5. cell — a phone
  6. capital — a big letter
  7. bass — the fish
  8. bore — gave birth
  9. capital — a city
  10. band — a rubber band
  11. content — videos and posts
  12. ruler — a monarch
  13. ruler — for measuring
  14. cell — in biology
  15. content — happy
  16. bore — to tire
  17. content — the amount
  18. stick — a piece of wood
  19. stick — to attach or keep to
  20. capital — money
  21. bass — low music
  22. cell — in a prison
  23. ruler — for measuring
  24. stick — a piece of wood

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