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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 116 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
468
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: land · fan · shower · court · pit · bore · chair · capital

  1. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  2. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  3. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  4. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  5. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  6. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  7. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  8. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  9. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  10. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  11. The ball is in your ________________.
  12. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  13. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  14. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  15. When are we going to ________________?
  16. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  17. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  18. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  19. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  20. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  21. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  22. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  23. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  24. Can you turn the ________________ on?

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

Answer key

  1. shower — a meteor shower
  2. bore — gave birth
  3. pit — a hole
  4. capital — a big letter
  5. pit — a fruit stone
  6. pit — in a race
  7. bore — to drill
  8. shower — to wash
  9. court — of law
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. court — for sport
  12. land — ground
  13. chair — a professorship
  14. fan — a supporter
  15. land — to come down
  16. chair — to sit on
  17. court — of a king
  18. bore — to tire
  19. capital — money
  20. land — a country
  21. chair — a leader
  22. capital — a city
  23. shower — rain
  24. fan — to cool the air

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