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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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  2. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  3. We're almost out of ________________.
  4. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  5. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  6. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  7. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  8. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  9. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  10. You don't need to ________________ round.
  11. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  12. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  13. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  14. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  15. It's one o'clock ________________.
  16. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  17. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  18. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  19. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  20. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  21. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  22. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  23. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  24. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — clever
  2. shower — a meteor shower
  3. pop — soda
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. file — a document
  6. bear — the animal
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. fan — to cool the air
  9. chip — for betting
  10. pop — to visit
  11. pop — music
  12. shower — to wash
  13. sharp — with an edge
  14. bear — the animal
  15. sharp — exactly
  16. row — a line
  17. bear — to put up with
  18. file — a tool
  19. row — a quarrel
  20. row — to paddle
  21. file — a line of people
  22. chip — in a computer
  23. shower — rain
  24. chip — to eat

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