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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: field · rash · leaves · game · capital · rock · shower · nail

  1. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  2. That was a fun ________________.
  3. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  4. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  5. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  6. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  7. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  8. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  9. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  10. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  11. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  12. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  13. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  14. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  17. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  18. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  19. Don't do anything ________________.
  20. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  21. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  22. The ________________ went through the wall.
  23. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  24. The train ________________ at six o'clock.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — music
  2. game — a match
  3. rock — a stone
  4. nail — on a finger
  5. nail — for a hammer
  6. capital — a big letter
  7. shower — rain
  8. rash — a series
  9. shower — to wash
  10. leaves — of a tree
  11. rock — to move gently
  12. field — a subject
  13. capital — money
  14. field — for sport
  15. field — farmland
  16. capital — a city
  17. rash — on the skin
  18. leaves — lets stay
  19. rash — hasty
  20. game — wild animals
  21. shower — a meteor shower
  22. nail — for a hammer
  23. game — a kind of play
  24. leaves — to go away

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