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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: ruler · stick · rash · net · chest · squash · shower · capital

  1. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  2. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  3. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  4. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  5. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  6. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  7. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  8. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  9. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  10. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  11. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  12. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  13. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  14. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  15. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  16. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  17. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  18. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  19. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  20. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  21. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  22. Don't do anything ________________.
  23. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  24. Beijing is the ________________ of China.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — rain
  2. net — after costs
  3. stick — to attach or keep to
  4. squash — the sport
  5. rash — on the skin
  6. net — for catching
  7. ruler — for measuring
  8. capital — money
  9. squash — the vegetable
  10. shower — to wash
  11. ruler — a monarch
  12. net — in sport
  13. rash — a series
  14. ruler — for measuring
  15. stick — a piece of wood
  16. chest — a box
  17. shower — a meteor shower
  18. chest — of your body
  19. capital — a big letter
  20. stick — a piece of wood
  21. chest — of your body
  22. rash — hasty
  23. squash — to crush
  24. capital — a city

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