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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: shower · firm · wind · court · hide · capital · plane · staff

  1. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  2. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  3. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  4. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  5. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  6. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  7. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  8. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  9. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  10. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  11. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  12. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  13. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  14. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  15. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  16. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  17. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  18. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  19. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  20. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  21. The ball is in your ________________.
  22. The ________________ took off on time.
  23. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  24. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. shower — to wash
  3. shower — a meteor shower
  4. capital — a big letter
  5. wind — moving air
  6. wind — to turn a key
  7. plane — in geometry
  8. court — of law
  9. firm — steady
  10. hide — animal skin
  11. hide — to keep secret
  12. hide — to keep secret
  13. staff — employees
  14. firm — decided
  15. capital — a city
  16. plane — a tool
  17. capital — money
  18. staff — employees
  19. staff — a stick
  20. shower — rain
  21. court — for sport
  22. plane — an aircraft
  23. firm — a company
  24. court — of a king

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