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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 120 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: straw · mine · suit · shower · patient · chip · rash · fall

  1. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  2. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  3. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  4. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  5. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  6. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  7. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  8. Don't do anything ________________.
  9. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  10. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  11. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  12. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  13. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  14. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  15. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  16. When will it ________________ you to start?
  17. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  18. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  19. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  20. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  21. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  22. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  23. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  24. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — to clutch at straws
  2. chip — to eat
  3. mine — for digging
  4. fall — to drop
  5. mine — an explosive
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. suit — in cards
  8. rash — hasty
  9. shower — a meteor shower
  10. straw — a straw man
  11. fall — to drop
  12. shower — rain
  13. rash — on the skin
  14. mine — belonging to me
  15. chip — in a computer
  16. suit — to fit
  17. shower — to wash
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. fall — the season
  20. patient — calm and waiting
  21. chip — for betting
  22. suit — clothes
  23. straw — dry grass
  24. rash — a series

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