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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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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: kid · spell · rock · shower · firm · bank · cap · fall

  1. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  2. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  3. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  4. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  5. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  6. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  7. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  8. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  9. How do you ________________ your surname?
  10. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  11. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  12. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  13. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  14. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  15. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  16. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  17. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  18. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  19. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  20. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  21. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  22. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  23. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  24. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a hat
  2. rock — music
  3. shower — a meteor shower
  4. firm — a company
  5. spell — a short time
  6. fall — the season
  7. cap — a lid
  8. fall — to drop
  9. spell — letters
  10. rock — to move gently
  11. shower — to wash
  12. kid — child
  13. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  14. firm — steady
  15. bank — of a river
  16. spell — magic
  17. kid — to tease
  18. shower — rain
  19. cap — of ice
  20. rock — a stone
  21. fall — to drop
  22. bank — for money
  23. firm — decided
  24. bank — for 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