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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: object · club · hand · capital · shower · safe · ground · racket

  1. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  2. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  3. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  4. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  5. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  6. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  7. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  8. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  9. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  10. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  11. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  12. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  13. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  14. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  15. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  16. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  17. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  18. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  19. There's no middle ________________.
  20. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  21. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  22. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  23. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  24. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — help
  2. safe — out of danger
  3. object — a thing
  4. club — for dancing
  5. safe — out of danger
  6. shower — to wash
  7. capital — a city
  8. club — a group
  9. racket — a loud noise
  10. hand — part of the body
  11. capital — a big letter
  12. capital — money
  13. shower — rain
  14. hand — in cards
  15. object — to protest
  16. ground — the earth
  17. shower — a meteor shower
  18. ground — crushed
  19. ground — a position
  20. racket — for tennis
  21. safe — a strongbox
  22. racket — for tennis
  23. club — for golf
  24. object — an aim

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