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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 116 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: pit · saw · land · shower · mate · sharp · hand · chip

  1. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  2. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  3. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  4. When are we going to ________________?
  5. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  6. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  7. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  8. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  9. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  10. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  11. She's very handy with a ________________.
  12. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  13. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  14. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  15. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  16. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  17. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  18. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  19. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  20. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  21. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  22. He works in a ________________ mill.
  23. Have you found your soul ________________?
  24. It's one o'clock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — past of 'see'
  2. land — a country
  3. chip — in a computer
  4. land — to come down
  5. shower — a meteor shower
  6. hand — help
  7. mate — a friend
  8. chip — to eat
  9. chip — for betting
  10. pit — in a race
  11. saw — the tool
  12. mate — to breed
  13. hand — in cards
  14. shower — to wash
  15. pit — a fruit stone
  16. land — ground
  17. shower — rain
  18. pit — a hole
  19. sharp — with an edge
  20. sharp — clever
  21. hand — part of the body
  22. saw — the tool
  23. mate — a partner
  24. sharp — exactly

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