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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.

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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: staff · hand · capital · bark · firm · ground · stick · shower

  1. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  2. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  3. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  4. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  5. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  6. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  7. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  8. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  9. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  10. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  11. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  12. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  13. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  16. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  17. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  18. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  19. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  20. There's no middle ________________.
  21. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  22. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  23. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  24. I got dealt a bad ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — rain
  2. shower — to wash
  3. stick — a piece of wood
  4. shower — a meteor shower
  5. capital — money
  6. ground — the earth
  7. staff — employees
  8. firm — steady
  9. capital — a big letter
  10. bark — to shout
  11. firm — decided
  12. staff — a stick
  13. firm — a company
  14. capital — a city
  15. ground — crushed
  16. hand — help
  17. bark — a dog's sound
  18. stick — to attach or keep to
  19. stick — a piece of wood
  20. ground — a position
  21. staff — employees
  22. hand — part of the body
  23. bark — of a tree
  24. hand — in cards

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