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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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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: bore · capital · shower · wake · race · bowl · club · rush

  1. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  2. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  3. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  4. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  5. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  6. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  7. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  8. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  9. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  10. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  11. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  12. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  13. That must've been a ________________.
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  16. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  17. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  18. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  19. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  20. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  21. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  22. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  23. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  24. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.

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

Answer key

  1. club — a group
  2. bore — gave birth
  3. bowl — a dish
  4. capital — a big letter
  5. shower — rain
  6. club — for golf
  7. wake — before a funeral
  8. shower — to wash
  9. bore — to drill
  10. capital — money
  11. shower — a meteor shower
  12. bowl — a football final
  13. rush — a thrill
  14. capital — a city
  15. race — a contest
  16. club — for dancing
  17. race — humankind
  18. wake — to stop sleeping
  19. bore — to tire
  20. rush — to hurry
  21. rush — hurry
  22. race — the arms race
  23. bowl — to roll
  24. wake — a trail

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