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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: shower · capital · bulb · lash · rush · mouse · land · firm

  1. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  2. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  3. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  4. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  5. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  6. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  7. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  8. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  9. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  10. I've got to change the light ________________.
  11. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  12. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  13. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  14. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  15. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  16. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  17. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  18. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  19. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  20. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  21. The light ________________ burned out.
  22. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  23. When are we going to ________________?
  24. That must've been a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — hurry
  2. mouse — the animal
  3. capital — a big letter
  4. lash — an eyelash
  5. rush — to hurry
  6. bulb — of a plant
  7. land — a country
  8. firm — steady
  9. mouse — for a computer
  10. bulb — for light
  11. lash — to lash out
  12. firm — decided
  13. shower — rain
  14. lash — a whip stroke
  15. shower — to wash
  16. land — ground
  17. capital — money
  18. firm — a company
  19. shower — a meteor shower
  20. capital — a city
  21. bulb — for light
  22. mouse — the animal
  23. land — to come down
  24. rush — a thrill

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