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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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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: object · shower · fork · chip · rash · date · club · stick

  1. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  2. Don't do anything ________________.
  3. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  4. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  5. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  6. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  7. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  8. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  9. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  10. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  11. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  12. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  13. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  14. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  15. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  16. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  17. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  18. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  19. Have you settled on a ________________?
  20. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  21. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  22. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  23. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  24. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.

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

Answer key

  1. club — a group
  2. rash — hasty
  3. fork — to eat with
  4. chip — for betting
  5. stick — a piece of wood
  6. date — on the calendar
  7. rash — on the skin
  8. shower — a meteor shower
  9. stick — a piece of wood
  10. shower — rain
  11. chip — in a computer
  12. object — an aim
  13. club — for golf
  14. shower — to wash
  15. chip — to eat
  16. fork — in a road
  17. stick — to attach or keep to
  18. object — a thing
  19. date — on the calendar
  20. fork — a garden tool
  21. rash — a series
  22. date — the fruit
  23. object — to protest
  24. club — for dancing

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