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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: wave · capital · band · mine · game · shower · craft · present

  1. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  2. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  3. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  4. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  5. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  6. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  7. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  8. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  9. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  10. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  11. That was a fun ________________.
  12. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  13. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  14. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  15. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  16. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  17. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  18. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  19. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  20. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  21. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  22. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  23. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  24. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a kind of play
  2. wave — of the sea
  3. game — wild animals
  4. shower — a meteor shower
  5. wave — a sudden rise
  6. band — a ring
  7. mine — belonging to me
  8. wave — with your hand
  9. band — a rubber band
  10. craft — boats
  11. game — a match
  12. mine — for digging
  13. capital — a city
  14. present — there
  15. present — a gift
  16. shower — rain
  17. capital — a big letter
  18. band — a music group
  19. craft — a handicraft
  20. shower — to wash
  21. mine — an explosive
  22. present — the time now
  23. craft — a skill
  24. capital — money

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