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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: capital · chest · row · trunk · shower · hide · suit · wind

  1. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  2. When will it ________________ you to start?
  3. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  4. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  5. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  6. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  7. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  8. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  9. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  10. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  11. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  12. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  13. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  14. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  15. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  16. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  17. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  18. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  19. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  20. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  21. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  22. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  23. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  24. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — money
  2. suit — to fit
  3. trunk — of an elephant
  4. hide — to keep secret
  5. suit — clothes
  6. shower — rain
  7. trunk — of a tree
  8. wind — moving air
  9. shower — a meteor shower
  10. chest — of your body
  11. wind — moving air
  12. row — to paddle
  13. hide — animal skin
  14. row — a quarrel
  15. suit — in cards
  16. row — a line
  17. capital — a city
  18. chest — of your body
  19. wind — to turn a key
  20. shower — to wash
  21. hide — to keep secret
  22. capital — a big letter
  23. trunk — of a car
  24. chest — a box

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