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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: stand · dip · cap · shower · bank · tear

  1. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  2. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  3. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  4. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  5. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  6. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  7. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  8. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  9. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  10. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  11. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  12. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  13. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  14. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  15. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  16. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  17. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  18. I can't ________________ this cold.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a hat
  2. shower — to wash
  3. dip — a sauce
  4. tear — from crying
  5. stand — for spectators
  6. tear — to rip
  7. cap — of ice
  8. tear — from crying
  9. stand — on your feet
  10. dip — to dunk
  11. cap — a lid
  12. bank — of a river
  13. shower — rain
  14. bank — for money
  15. bank — for money
  16. shower — a meteor shower
  17. dip — to sink
  18. stand — to bear

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