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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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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 · row · capital · suit · track · nail · foot · pass

  1. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  2. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  3. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  4. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  5. The ________________ went through the wall.
  6. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  7. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  8. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  9. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  10. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  11. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  12. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  13. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  14. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  15. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  16. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  17. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  18. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  19. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  20. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  21. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  22. When will it ________________ you to start?
  23. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  24. We took cover from the thunder ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a city
  2. suit — in cards
  3. nail — for a hammer
  4. track — a song
  5. nail — for a hammer
  6. shower — to wash
  7. track — a path
  8. capital — money
  9. row — a line
  10. foot — a measure
  11. capital — a big letter
  12. pass — a permit
  13. foot — part of the body
  14. row — to paddle
  15. pass — to succeed
  16. pass — to spend time
  17. track — to keep track
  18. nail — on a finger
  19. row — a quarrel
  20. shower — a meteor shower
  21. foot — the bottom
  22. suit — to fit
  23. suit — clothes
  24. shower — rain

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