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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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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: shower · cue · swing · land · game · cap · bore · march

  1. When are we going to ________________?
  2. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  3. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  4. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  5. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  6. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  7. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  8. That was a fun ________________.
  9. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  10. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  11. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  12. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  13. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  14. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  15. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  16. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  17. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  18. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  19. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  20. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  21. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  22. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  23. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  24. David sat on the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. land — to come down
  2. swing — music
  3. game — a kind of play
  4. swing — in golf
  5. cue — for pool
  6. cap — a lid
  7. cue — a hint
  8. game — a match
  9. cue — a signal
  10. shower — rain
  11. bore — to drill
  12. shower — to wash
  13. march — the month
  14. land — ground
  15. land — a country
  16. cap — of ice
  17. bore — gave birth
  18. bore — to tire
  19. shower — a meteor shower
  20. game — wild animals
  21. march — the month
  22. march — music
  23. cap — a hat
  24. swing — to play on

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