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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 116 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 · coach · fork · root · calf · capital · ball · pop

  1. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  2. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  3. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  4. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  5. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  6. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  7. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  8. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  9. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  10. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  11. Have you met the new head ________________?
  12. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  13. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  14. The King held a masked ________________.
  15. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  16. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  17. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  18. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  19. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  20. You don't need to ________________ round.
  21. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  22. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  23. We're almost out of ________________.
  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. shower — to wash
  2. capital — a city
  3. fork — in a road
  4. shower — a meteor shower
  5. calf — a young animal
  6. fork — a garden tool
  7. ball — a round shape
  8. coach — pulled by horses
  9. calf — a young animal
  10. pop — music
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. shower — rain
  13. root — of a word
  14. ball — a dance
  15. fork — to eat with
  16. root — of a plant
  17. root — the cause
  18. calf — of the leg
  19. capital — a big letter
  20. pop — to visit
  21. ball — a great time
  22. coach — a trainer
  23. pop — soda
  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