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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: staff · deal · shower · clip · mug · march · cap · can

  1. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  2. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  3. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  4. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  5. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  6. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  7. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  8. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  9. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  10. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  11. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  12. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  13. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  14. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  15. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  16. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  17. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  18. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  19. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  20. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  21. Where did you ________________ them?
  22. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  23. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  24. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — an agreement
  2. mug — a face
  3. march — music
  4. deal — to handle
  5. staff — employees
  6. cap — of ice
  7. shower — to wash
  8. can — a tin
  9. deal — a big deal
  10. can — a tin
  11. staff — a stick
  12. cap — a lid
  13. can — to be able to
  14. clip — for paper
  15. shower — rain
  16. cap — a hat
  17. march — the month
  18. shower — a meteor shower
  19. mug — a cup
  20. clip — a video
  21. mug — to rob
  22. clip — to cut
  23. march — the month
  24. staff — employees

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