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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: shower · bear · stick · arm · fine · content · capital · firm

  1. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  2. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  3. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  6. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  7. My father caught me by the ________________.
  8. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  9. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  10. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  11. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  12. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  13. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  14. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  15. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  16. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  17. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  18. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  19. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  20. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  21. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  22. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  23. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  24. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — the animal
  2. fine — all right
  3. content — happy
  4. capital — money
  5. capital — a city
  6. firm — a company
  7. arm — part of the body
  8. shower — to wash
  9. content — the amount
  10. shower — rain
  11. stick — a piece of wood
  12. capital — a big letter
  13. arm — part of the body
  14. content — videos and posts
  15. firm — decided
  16. bear — the animal
  17. arm — a part of something
  18. firm — steady
  19. shower — a meteor shower
  20. fine — high quality
  21. bear — to put up with
  22. stick — a piece of wood
  23. fine — a penalty
  24. stick — to attach or keep to

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