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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 120 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: shower · band · stock · capital · nail · mug · fall · firm

  1. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  2. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  3. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  4. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  5. The ________________ went through the wall.
  6. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  7. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  8. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  9. Where did you ________________ them?
  10. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  11. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  12. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  13. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  14. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  15. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  16. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  17. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  18. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  19. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  20. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  21. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  22. The ________________ market has crashed.
  23. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  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. mug — a face
  2. nail — on a finger
  3. band — a rubber band
  4. mug — a cup
  5. nail — for a hammer
  6. stock — a soup base
  7. band — a ring
  8. capital — a big letter
  9. mug — to rob
  10. shower — a meteor shower
  11. shower — rain
  12. firm — steady
  13. nail — for a hammer
  14. firm — decided
  15. shower — to wash
  16. firm — a company
  17. stock — goods
  18. capital — a city
  19. fall — to drop
  20. band — a music group
  21. fall — to drop
  22. stock — shares
  23. fall — the season
  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