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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: hand · shower · trunk · dip · ball · perch · mug · capital

  1. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  2. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  3. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  4. The King held a masked ________________.
  5. Where did you ________________ them?
  6. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  7. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  8. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  9. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  10. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  11. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  12. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  13. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  14. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  15. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  16. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  17. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  18. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  19. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  20. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  21. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  22. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  23. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  24. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — a meteor shower
  2. capital — money
  3. mug — a face
  4. ball — a dance
  5. mug — to rob
  6. trunk — of a tree
  7. dip — to sink
  8. trunk — of a car
  9. capital — a city
  10. ball — a round shape
  11. hand — in cards
  12. perch — the fish
  13. capital — a big letter
  14. hand — help
  15. dip — to dunk
  16. shower — to wash
  17. dip — a sauce
  18. mug — a cup
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. ball — a great time
  21. shower — rain
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. trunk — of an elephant
  24. hand — part of the body

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