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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 116 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: cell · coach · tube · capital · safe · clip · bank · shower

  1. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  2. I'll be taking the ________________.
  3. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  4. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  5. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  6. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  7. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  8. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  9. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  10. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  11. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  12. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  13. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  14. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  15. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  16. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  17. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  18. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  19. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  20. Have you met the new head ________________?
  21. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  22. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  23. He was locked up in a ________________.
  24. Is it ________________ for us to be here?

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

Answer key

  1. safe — a strongbox
  2. tube — the underground
  3. coach — pulled by horses
  4. tube — a container
  5. bank — for money
  6. clip — to cut
  7. clip — for paper
  8. tube — in a tire
  9. cell — a phone
  10. bank — for money
  11. capital — a big letter
  12. shower — rain
  13. capital — a city
  14. clip — a video
  15. shower — a meteor shower
  16. cell — in biology
  17. shower — to wash
  18. bank — of a river
  19. safe — out of danger
  20. coach — a trainer
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. capital — money
  23. cell — in a prison
  24. safe — out of danger

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