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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: wound · fine · capital · mate · court · cap · jam · shower

  1. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  2. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  3. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  4. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  5. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  6. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  7. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  8. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  9. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  10. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  11. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  12. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  13. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  14. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  15. The ball is in your ________________.
  16. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  17. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  18. Have you found your soul ________________?
  19. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  20. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  21. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  22. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  23. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  24. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. jam — a tight spot
  2. capital — a city
  3. court — of law
  4. mate — a friend
  5. fine — a penalty
  6. capital — a big letter
  7. cap — a hat
  8. jam — to spread on bread
  9. mate — to breed
  10. shower — a meteor shower
  11. shower — to wash
  12. wound — an injury
  13. shower — rain
  14. cap — a lid
  15. court — for sport
  16. fine — all right
  17. wound — past of 'wind'
  18. mate — a partner
  19. wound — an injury
  20. fine — high quality
  21. court — of a king
  22. cap — of ice
  23. capital — money
  24. jam — in traffic

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