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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: plane · object · patient · jam · drill · shower · kick · capital

  1. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  2. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  3. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  4. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  5. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  6. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  7. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  8. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  9. The ________________ took off on time.
  10. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  11. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  12. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  13. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  14. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  15. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  16. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  17. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  18. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  19. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  20. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  21. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  22. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  23. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  24. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — a thrill
  2. jam — to spread on bread
  3. object — a thing
  4. shower — to wash
  5. object — to protest
  6. kick — in football
  7. drill — army training
  8. capital — a big letter
  9. plane — an aircraft
  10. kick — with a leg
  11. drill — a practice
  12. jam — a tight spot
  13. shower — rain
  14. object — an aim
  15. drill — the tool
  16. shower — a meteor shower
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. plane — in geometry
  19. jam — in traffic
  20. patient — a sick person
  21. capital — money
  22. plane — a tool
  23. capital — a city
  24. patient — calm and waiting

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