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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: shower · kick · suit · capital · board · rush · spell · spring

  1. That must've been a ________________.
  2. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  3. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  4. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  5. How do you ________________ your surname?
  6. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  7. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  8. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  9. When will it ________________ you to start?
  10. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  11. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  12. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  13. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  14. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  15. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  16. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  17. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  18. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  19. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  20. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  21. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  22. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  23. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  24. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — a thrill
  2. spring — the season
  3. shower — to wash
  4. spring — a coil
  5. spell — letters
  6. spell — a short time
  7. shower — rain
  8. kick — in football
  9. suit — to fit
  10. rush — hurry
  11. suit — clothes
  12. board — to get on
  13. board — a committee
  14. rush — to hurry
  15. suit — in cards
  16. kick — with a leg
  17. capital — money
  18. board — a flat piece
  19. spell — magic
  20. capital — a city
  21. capital — a big letter
  22. spring — of water
  23. kick — a thrill
  24. shower — a meteor shower

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