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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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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: rule · firm · bowl · cold · mouse · shower · capital · bay

  1. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  2. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  3. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  4. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  5. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  6. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  7. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  8. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  9. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  10. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  11. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  12. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  13. The water is too ________________.
  14. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  15. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  16. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  17. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  18. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  19. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  20. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  21. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  22. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  23. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  24. My mare is ________________ in color.

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

Answer key

  1. firm — steady
  2. rule — government
  3. shower — rain
  4. bowl — to roll
  5. mouse — for a computer
  6. capital — a big letter
  7. firm — decided
  8. shower — to wash
  9. mouse — the animal
  10. rule — to rule out
  11. bowl — a dish
  12. cold — an illness
  13. cold — not warm
  14. bay — to keep at bay
  15. bay — a part of the sea
  16. bowl — a football final
  17. rule — a law
  18. mouse — the animal
  19. cold — the Cold War
  20. capital — money
  21. shower — a meteor shower
  22. firm — a company
  23. capital — a city
  24. bay — a horse colour

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