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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.

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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: cap · band · hide · capital · mate · shower · spring · bound

  1. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  2. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  3. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  4. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  5. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  6. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  7. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  8. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  9. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  10. That was ________________ to happen.
  11. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  12. Have you found your soul ________________?
  13. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  14. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  15. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  16. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  17. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  18. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  19. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  20. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  21. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  22. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  23. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  24. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — a meteor shower
  2. spring — a coil
  3. band — a music group
  4. spring — of water
  5. spring — the season
  6. hide — animal skin
  7. cap — a hat
  8. band — a ring
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. bound — certain
  11. hide — to keep secret
  12. mate — a partner
  13. cap — a lid
  14. mate — a friend
  15. shower — rain
  16. capital — money
  17. bound — tied together
  18. bound — obliged
  19. band — a rubber band
  20. capital — a big letter
  21. shower — to wash
  22. capital — a city
  23. cap — of ice
  24. mate — to breed

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