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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: chip · cell · kick · shower · coach · fork

  1. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  2. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  3. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  4. Have you met the new head ________________?
  5. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  6. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  7. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  8. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  9. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  10. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  11. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  12. He was locked up in a ________________.
  13. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  14. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  15. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  16. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  17. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  18. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!

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

Answer key

  1. fork — to eat with
  2. shower — to wash
  3. kick — in football
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. kick — with a leg
  6. shower — a meteor shower
  7. fork — a garden tool
  8. kick — a thrill
  9. chip — to eat
  10. fork — in a road
  11. coach — pulled by horses
  12. cell — in a prison
  13. shower — rain
  14. chip — for betting
  15. cell — in biology
  16. chip — in a computer
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. cell — a phone

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