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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: cap · shower · present · scale · foot · band · fall · stick

  1. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  2. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  3. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  4. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  5. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  6. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  7. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  8. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  9. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  10. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  11. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  12. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  13. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  14. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  15. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  16. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  17. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  18. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  19. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  20. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  21. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  22. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  23. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  24. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — a piece of wood
  2. fall — to drop
  3. band — a rubber band
  4. stick — to attach or keep to
  5. foot — a measure
  6. present — a gift
  7. foot — part of the body
  8. fall — the season
  9. fall — to drop
  10. present — there
  11. scale — in music
  12. cap — of ice
  13. scale — size or range
  14. scale — for weighing
  15. shower — rain
  16. stick — a piece of wood
  17. band — a ring
  18. cap — a hat
  19. band — a music group
  20. present — the time now
  21. shower — to wash
  22. cap — a lid
  23. shower — a meteor shower
  24. foot — the bottom

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