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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 120 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: chip · tear · shower · last · wake · cell

  1. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  2. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  3. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  4. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  5. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  6. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  7. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  8. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  9. False peace will not ________________.
  10. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  11. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  12. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  13. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  14. He was locked up in a ________________.
  15. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  16. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  17. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  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. shower — rain
  2. shower — to wash
  3. chip — in a computer
  4. chip — to eat
  5. wake — to stop sleeping
  6. cell — in biology
  7. tear — to rip
  8. chip — for betting
  9. last — to go on
  10. shower — a meteor shower
  11. wake — a trail
  12. wake — before a funeral
  13. last — final
  14. cell — in a prison
  15. last — finally
  16. cell — a phone
  17. tear — from crying
  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