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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: pop · mark · drill · capital · shower · key · season · firm

  1. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  2. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  4. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  5. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  6. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  7. Did you ________________ the meat?
  8. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  9. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  10. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  11. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  12. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  13. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  14. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  15. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  16. This piece is in a major ________________.
  17. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  18. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  19. We're almost out of ________________.
  20. You don't need to ________________ round.
  21. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  22. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  23. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  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. firm — a company
  2. capital — a big letter
  3. pop — music
  4. firm — steady
  5. key — for a lock
  6. firm — decided
  7. season — to add flavour
  8. key — the most important part
  9. mark — to pay attention
  10. drill — army training
  11. drill — the tool
  12. shower — to wash
  13. drill — a practice
  14. mark — a trace
  15. mark — a grade
  16. key — in music
  17. shower — rain
  18. season — in sport
  19. pop — soda
  20. pop — to visit
  21. capital — money
  22. season — of the year
  23. capital — a city
  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