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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: lean · chip · drill · shower · capital · rule · board · court

  1. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  2. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  3. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  4. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  5. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  6. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  7. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  8. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  9. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  10. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  11. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  12. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  13. The ball is in your ________________.
  14. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  15. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  16. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  17. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  18. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  19. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  20. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  21. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  22. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  23. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  24. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — money
  2. chip — in a computer
  3. rule — government
  4. capital — a city
  5. rule — a law
  6. shower — rain
  7. board — a committee
  8. shower — a meteor shower
  9. chip — to eat
  10. lean — thin
  11. chip — for betting
  12. board — a flat piece
  13. court — for sport
  14. capital — a big letter
  15. lean — to bend
  16. rule — to rule out
  17. court — of law
  18. drill — a practice
  19. lean — to rest against
  20. drill — army training
  21. shower — to wash
  22. drill — the tool
  23. court — of a king
  24. board — to get on

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