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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: shower · stand · tube · march · pass · cap · content · fall

  1. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  2. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  3. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  4. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  5. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  6. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  7. I can't ________________ this cold.
  8. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  9. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  10. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  11. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  12. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  13. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  14. I'll be taking the ________________.
  15. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  16. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  17. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  18. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  19. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  20. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  21. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  22. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  23. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  24. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. march — music
  2. stand — for spectators
  3. cap — of ice
  4. pass — to succeed
  5. shower — to wash
  6. pass — to spend time
  7. stand — to bear
  8. fall — the season
  9. content — videos and posts
  10. fall — to drop
  11. content — the amount
  12. cap — a hat
  13. pass — a permit
  14. tube — the underground
  15. tube — in a tire
  16. fall — to drop
  17. march — the month
  18. cap — a lid
  19. content — happy
  20. shower — rain
  21. tube — a container
  22. stand — on your feet
  23. march — the month
  24. shower — a meteor shower

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