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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: hand · lie · kid · nail · shower · chip · straw · can

  1. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  2. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  3. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  4. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  5. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  6. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  7. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  8. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  9. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  10. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  11. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  12. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  13. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  14. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  15. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  16. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  17. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  18. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  19. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  20. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  21. The ________________ went through the wall.
  22. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  23. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  24. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — to tease
  2. shower — rain
  3. chip — in a computer
  4. hand — help
  5. straw — dry grass
  6. kid — child
  7. nail — on a finger
  8. can — a tin
  9. can — to be able to
  10. chip — to eat
  11. shower — to wash
  12. hand — part of the body
  13. nail — for a hammer
  14. chip — for betting
  15. lie — to recline
  16. hand — in cards
  17. straw — to clutch at straws
  18. lie — an untruth
  19. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  20. can — a tin
  21. nail — for a hammer
  22. shower — a meteor shower
  23. straw — a straw man
  24. lie — an untruth

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