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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: shower · file · sharp · chip · season · net · last · roll

  1. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  2. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  3. False peace will not ________________.
  4. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  5. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  6. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  7. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  8. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  9. Did you ________________ the meat?
  10. We're on a ________________ here.
  11. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  12. It's one o'clock ________________.
  13. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  14. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  15. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  16. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  17. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  18. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  19. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  20. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  21. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  22. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  23. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  24. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!

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

Answer key

  1. chip — to eat
  2. net — in sport
  3. last — to go on
  4. roll — a cake
  5. chip — in a computer
  6. shower — to wash
  7. season — in sport
  8. sharp — with an edge
  9. season — to add flavour
  10. roll — on a roll
  11. sharp — clever
  12. sharp — exactly
  13. chip — for betting
  14. file — a document
  15. season — of the year
  16. net — for catching
  17. roll — a list
  18. file — a tool
  19. shower — rain
  20. file — a line of people
  21. shower — a meteor shower
  22. last — finally
  23. net — after costs
  24. last — final

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