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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: nail · lie · jam · shower · capital · cold · trunk · rash

  1. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  2. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  3. The water is too ________________.
  4. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  5. The ________________ went through the wall.
  6. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  7. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  8. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  9. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  10. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  11. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  12. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  13. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  14. Don't do anything ________________.
  15. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  16. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  17. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  18. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  19. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  20. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  21. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  22. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  23. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  24. Tom got himself in a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. jam — in traffic
  2. jam — to spread on bread
  3. cold — not warm
  4. shower — rain
  5. nail — for a hammer
  6. shower — to wash
  7. nail — on a finger
  8. trunk — of an elephant
  9. trunk — of a tree
  10. cold — an illness
  11. lie — an untruth
  12. capital — a city
  13. capital — a big letter
  14. rash — hasty
  15. lie — an untruth
  16. rash — on the skin
  17. nail — for a hammer
  18. shower — a meteor shower
  19. cold — the Cold War
  20. lie — to recline
  21. capital — money
  22. trunk — of a car
  23. rash — a series
  24. jam — a tight spot

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