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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.

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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: mine · cap · object · last · fine · shower · ground · wound

  1. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  2. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  3. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  4. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  5. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  6. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  7. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  8. False peace will not ________________.
  9. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  10. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  11. There's no middle ________________.
  12. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  13. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  14. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  15. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  16. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  17. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  18. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  19. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  20. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  21. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  22. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  23. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  24. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a lid
  2. ground — the earth
  3. shower — to wash
  4. fine — a penalty
  5. object — to protest
  6. ground — crushed
  7. last — finally
  8. last — to go on
  9. last — final
  10. cap — of ice
  11. ground — a position
  12. mine — belonging to me
  13. object — a thing
  14. fine — all right
  15. mine — for digging
  16. wound — an injury
  17. shower — rain
  18. wound — past of 'wind'
  19. mine — an explosive
  20. cap — a hat
  21. wound — an injury
  22. object — an aim
  23. shower — a meteor shower
  24. fine — high quality

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