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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: wave · ball · cap · cabinet · clip · racket · shower · spring

  1. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  2. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  3. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  4. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  5. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  6. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  7. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  8. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  9. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  10. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  11. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  12. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  13. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  14. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  15. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  16. The King held a masked ________________.
  17. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  18. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  19. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  20. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  21. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  22. What do you think of the new ________________?
  23. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  24. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — a coil
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. shower — rain
  4. racket — a loud noise
  5. shower — to wash
  6. wave — a sudden rise
  7. cap — of ice
  8. clip — a video
  9. ball — a great time
  10. spring — the season
  11. shower — a meteor shower
  12. ball — a round shape
  13. racket — for tennis
  14. wave — with your hand
  15. clip — for paper
  16. ball — a dance
  17. cabinet — a cupboard
  18. wave — of the sea
  19. spring — of water
  20. cabinet — ministers
  21. clip — to cut
  22. cabinet — ministers
  23. cap — a lid
  24. cap — a hat

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