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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: current · chair · file · rash · spring · fan · shower · object

  1. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  2. Don't do anything ________________.
  3. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  4. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  5. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  6. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  7. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  8. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  9. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  10. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  11. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  12. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  13. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  14. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  15. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  16. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  17. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  18. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  19. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  20. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  21. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  22. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  23. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  24. We took cover from the thunder ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — to sit on
  2. rash — hasty
  3. file — a tool
  4. object — a thing
  5. shower — a meteor shower
  6. rash — a series
  7. current — electric
  8. chair — a leader
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. file — a document
  11. spring — of water
  12. spring — the season
  13. chair — a professorship
  14. shower — to wash
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. object — to protest
  17. file — a line of people
  18. rash — on the skin
  19. current — of water
  20. object — an aim
  21. spring — a coil
  22. current — happening now
  23. fan — to cool the air
  24. shower — rain

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