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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: rush · shower · march · plane · cap · board · race · hand

  1. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  2. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  3. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  4. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  5. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  6. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  7. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  8. The ________________ took off on time.
  9. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  10. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  11. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  12. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  13. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  14. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  15. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  16. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  17. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  18. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  19. That must've been a ________________.
  20. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  21. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  22. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  23. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  24. ________________ games are popular in Germany.

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

Answer key

  1. march — music
  2. hand — help
  3. rush — to hurry
  4. rush — hurry
  5. cap — a hat
  6. shower — rain
  7. hand — in cards
  8. plane — an aircraft
  9. cap — of ice
  10. shower — to wash
  11. hand — part of the body
  12. race — humankind
  13. shower — a meteor shower
  14. board — to get on
  15. race — a contest
  16. march — the month
  17. plane — a tool
  18. plane — in geometry
  19. rush — a thrill
  20. board — a committee
  21. march — the month
  22. race — the arms race
  23. cap — a lid
  24. board — a flat piece

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