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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: can · fall · snap · capital · band · stem · shower · board

  1. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  2. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  3. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  4. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  5. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  6. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  7. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  8. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  9. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  10. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  11. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  12. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  13. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  14. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  15. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  16. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  17. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  18. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  19. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  20. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  21. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  22. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  23. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  24. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — of a plant
  2. shower — rain
  3. board — a committee
  4. stem — to come from
  5. band — a ring
  6. can — to be able to
  7. can — a tin
  8. band — a rubber band
  9. band — a music group
  10. shower — to wash
  11. snap — to speak sharply
  12. capital — money
  13. fall — to drop
  14. board — a flat piece
  15. shower — a meteor shower
  16. stem — a stem cell
  17. fall — the season
  18. capital — a city
  19. capital — a big letter
  20. snap — to click
  21. fall — to drop
  22. can — a tin
  23. board — to get on
  24. snap — to snap out of it

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