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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: capital · wound · shower · drill · scale · can · clip · object

  1. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  2. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  3. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  4. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  5. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  6. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  7. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  8. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  9. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  10. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  11. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  12. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  13. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  14. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  15. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  16. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  17. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  18. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  19. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  20. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  21. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  22. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  23. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  24. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a big letter
  2. wound — an injury
  3. drill — the tool
  4. wound — past of 'wind'
  5. scale — for weighing
  6. object — to protest
  7. clip — to cut
  8. shower — rain
  9. can — a tin
  10. can — to be able to
  11. object — an aim
  12. object — a thing
  13. can — a tin
  14. scale — in music
  15. drill — a practice
  16. capital — money
  17. shower — to wash
  18. wound — an injury
  19. capital — a city
  20. clip — a video
  21. clip — for paper
  22. drill — army training
  23. shower — a meteor shower
  24. scale — size or range

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