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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: jam · fall · shower · capital · can · band · bear · game

  1. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  2. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  3. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  4. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  5. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  6. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  7. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  8. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  9. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  10. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  11. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  12. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  13. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  14. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  15. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  16. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  17. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  18. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  19. That was a fun ________________.
  20. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  21. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  22. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  23. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  24. He's taking a ________________ right now.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. jam — a tight spot
  3. jam — in traffic
  4. capital — a city
  5. band — a music group
  6. capital — a big letter
  7. bear — the animal
  8. band — a rubber band
  9. game — wild animals
  10. can — to be able to
  11. shower — rain
  12. band — a ring
  13. game — a kind of play
  14. fall — the season
  15. shower — a meteor shower
  16. can — a tin
  17. bear — to put up with
  18. capital — money
  19. game — a match
  20. jam — to spread on bread
  21. bear — the animal
  22. fall — to drop
  23. can — a tin
  24. shower — to wash

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