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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: rash · field · chip · key · shower · content · staff · drill

  1. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  2. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  3. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  4. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  5. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  6. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  7. This piece is in a major ________________.
  8. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  9. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  10. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  11. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  12. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  13. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  14. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  15. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  16. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  17. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  18. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  19. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  20. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  21. Don't do anything ________________.
  22. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  23. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  24. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.

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

Answer key

  1. chip — to eat
  2. staff — a stick
  3. key — the most important part
  4. staff — employees
  5. chip — for betting
  6. field — for sport
  7. key — in music
  8. staff — employees
  9. content — videos and posts
  10. drill — the tool
  11. rash — on the skin
  12. drill — army training
  13. shower — a meteor shower
  14. rash — a series
  15. key — for a lock
  16. field — farmland
  17. chip — in a computer
  18. shower — rain
  19. shower — to wash
  20. content — happy
  21. rash — hasty
  22. content — the amount
  23. drill — a practice
  24. field — a subject

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