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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: deal · content · bay · shower · chair · wake · hand · pit

  1. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  2. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  3. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  4. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  5. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  6. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  7. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  8. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  9. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  10. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  11. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  12. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  13. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  14. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  15. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  16. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  17. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  18. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  19. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  20. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  21. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  22. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  23. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  24. My mare is ________________ in color.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — a meteor shower
  2. wake — before a funeral
  3. pit — a hole
  4. pit — a fruit stone
  5. hand — help
  6. content — happy
  7. content — videos and posts
  8. hand — in cards
  9. chair — a professorship
  10. shower — to wash
  11. deal — a big deal
  12. content — the amount
  13. wake — a trail
  14. hand — part of the body
  15. chair — a leader
  16. wake — to stop sleeping
  17. bay — a part of the sea
  18. deal — to handle
  19. pit — in a race
  20. bay — to keep at bay
  21. deal — an agreement
  22. shower — rain
  23. chair — to sit on
  24. bay — a horse colour

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