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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: stick · bark · cap · shower · file · chip · trunk · face

  1. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  2. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  3. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  4. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  5. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  6. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  7. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  8. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  9. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  10. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  11. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  12. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  13. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  14. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  15. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  16. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  17. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  18. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  19. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  20. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  21. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  22. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  23. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  24. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a hat
  2. shower — rain
  3. shower — a meteor shower
  4. bark — a dog's sound
  5. stick — to attach or keep to
  6. bark — to shout
  7. file — a document
  8. stick — a piece of wood
  9. face — to confront
  10. face — to point toward
  11. chip — to eat
  12. cap — a lid
  13. chip — in a computer
  14. cap — of ice
  15. file — a tool
  16. shower — to wash
  17. trunk — of a tree
  18. stick — a piece of wood
  19. file — a line of people
  20. trunk — of a car
  21. face — part of the head
  22. chip — for betting
  23. trunk — of an elephant
  24. bark — of a tree

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