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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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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: plane · cap · scale · band · ball · stand · bass · shower

  1. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  2. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  3. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  4. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  5. I can't ________________ this cold.
  6. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  7. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  8. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  9. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  10. The ________________ took off on time.
  11. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  12. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  13. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  14. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  15. The King held a masked ________________.
  16. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  17. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  18. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  19. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  20. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  21. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  22. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  23. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  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. shower — to wash
  2. ball — a great time
  3. band — a music group
  4. ball — a round shape
  5. stand — to bear
  6. cap — a hat
  7. shower — rain
  8. cap — of ice
  9. bass — the fish
  10. plane — an aircraft
  11. scale — in music
  12. scale — for weighing
  13. shower — a meteor shower
  14. scale — size or range
  15. ball — a dance
  16. bass — low music
  17. cap — a lid
  18. stand — on your feet
  19. plane — a tool
  20. band — a rubber band
  21. bass — the instrument
  22. stand — for spectators
  23. plane — in geometry
  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