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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: staff · jam · capital · firm · foot · land · shower · last

  1. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  2. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  3. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  4. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  5. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  6. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  7. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  8. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  9. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  10. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  11. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  12. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  13. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  14. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  15. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  16. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  17. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  18. When are we going to ________________?
  19. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  20. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  21. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  22. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  23. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  24. False peace will not ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. jam — in traffic
  3. capital — a big letter
  4. jam — to spread on bread
  5. shower — rain
  6. capital — money
  7. last — finally
  8. firm — a company
  9. foot — the bottom
  10. capital — a city
  11. jam — a tight spot
  12. land — a country
  13. foot — a measure
  14. staff — employees
  15. staff — a stick
  16. shower — a meteor shower
  17. foot — part of the body
  18. land — to come down
  19. firm — steady
  20. last — final
  21. land — ground
  22. shower — to wash
  23. firm — decided
  24. last — to go on

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