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

Word bank: tear · last · shower · fork · pit · chip

  1. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  2. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  3. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  4. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  5. False peace will not ________________.
  6. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  7. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  8. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  9. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  10. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  11. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  12. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  13. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  14. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  15. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  16. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  17. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  18. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.

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

Answer key

  1. chip — for betting
  2. last — final
  3. chip — to eat
  4. shower — rain
  5. last — to go on
  6. shower — to wash
  7. fork — in a road
  8. fork — a garden tool
  9. fork — to eat with
  10. pit — a fruit stone
  11. pit — a hole
  12. pit — in a race
  13. tear — from crying
  14. last — finally
  15. chip — in a computer
  16. tear — to rip
  17. shower — a meteor shower
  18. tear — from crying

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