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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: band · wound · land · chip · march · shower · cabinet · safe

  1. What do you think of the new ________________?
  2. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  3. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  4. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  5. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  6. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  7. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  8. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  9. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  10. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  11. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  12. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  13. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  14. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  15. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  16. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  17. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  18. When are we going to ________________?
  19. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  20. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  21. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  22. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  23. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  24. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — ministers
  2. cabinet — ministers
  3. chip — for betting
  4. band — a music group
  5. shower — to wash
  6. shower — a meteor shower
  7. cabinet — a cupboard
  8. safe — out of danger
  9. land — ground
  10. march — the month
  11. wound — an injury
  12. safe — a strongbox
  13. land — a country
  14. wound — past of 'wind'
  15. chip — to eat
  16. shower — rain
  17. safe — out of danger
  18. land — to come down
  19. march — music
  20. march — the month
  21. chip — in a computer
  22. band — a rubber band
  23. wound — an injury
  24. band — a ring

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