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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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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: rule · band · shower · capital · wave · charge

  1. The tickets are free of ________________.
  2. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  3. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  4. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  5. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  6. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  7. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  8. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  9. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  10. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  11. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  12. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  13. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  14. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  15. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  16. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  17. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  18. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — a price
  2. band — a music group
  3. shower — a meteor shower
  4. wave — with your hand
  5. shower — rain
  6. rule — a law
  7. capital — money
  8. charge — in control
  9. band — a ring
  10. rule — to rule out
  11. capital — a city
  12. capital — a big letter
  13. rule — government
  14. shower — to wash
  15. charge — electricity
  16. band — a rubber band
  17. wave — a sudden rise
  18. wave — of the sea

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