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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 116 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: band · drill · capital · cap · shower · season · calf · march

  1. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  2. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  3. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  4. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  5. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  6. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  7. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  8. Did you ________________ the meat?
  9. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  10. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  11. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  12. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  13. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  14. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  15. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  16. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  17. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  18. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  19. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  20. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  21. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  22. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  23. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  24. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a big letter
  2. shower — a meteor shower
  3. season — of the year
  4. cap — a lid
  5. capital — a city
  6. shower — to wash
  7. drill — the tool
  8. season — to add flavour
  9. march — music
  10. drill — army training
  11. band — a ring
  12. season — in sport
  13. band — a music group
  14. march — the month
  15. band — a rubber band
  16. march — the month
  17. shower — rain
  18. capital — money
  19. calf — of the leg
  20. cap — a hat
  21. drill — a practice
  22. calf — a young animal
  23. cap — of ice
  24. calf — a young animal

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