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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
468
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: march · fan · capital · shower · game · ruler · rock · arm

  1. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  2. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  4. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  5. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  6. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  7. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  8. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  9. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  10. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  11. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  12. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  13. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  14. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  15. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  16. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  17. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  18. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  19. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  20. My father caught me by the ________________.
  21. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  22. That was a fun ________________.
  23. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  24. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — to cool the air
  2. capital — a big letter
  3. game — a kind of play
  4. shower — to wash
  5. arm — a part of something
  6. capital — money
  7. game — wild animals
  8. march — the month
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. ruler — for measuring
  11. rock — a stone
  12. ruler — a monarch
  13. capital — a city
  14. rock — music
  15. ruler — for measuring
  16. rock — to move gently
  17. march — music
  18. shower — a meteor shower
  19. march — the month
  20. arm — part of the body
  21. shower — rain
  22. game — a match
  23. arm — part of the body
  24. fan — a supporter

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