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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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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: fork · hand · wind · dip · patient · chip · shower · lash

  1. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  2. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  3. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  4. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  5. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  6. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  7. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  8. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  9. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  10. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  11. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  12. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  13. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  14. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  15. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  16. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  17. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  18. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  19. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  20. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  21. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  22. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  23. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  24. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — an eyelash
  2. fork — a garden tool
  3. chip — to eat
  4. shower — to wash
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. wind — moving air
  7. shower — a meteor shower
  8. dip — to sink
  9. patient — calm and waiting
  10. dip — a sauce
  11. wind — to turn a key
  12. chip — for betting
  13. hand — in cards
  14. dip — to dunk
  15. hand — part of the body
  16. chip — in a computer
  17. fork — in a road
  18. shower — rain
  19. lash — a whip stroke
  20. hand — help
  21. fork — to eat with
  22. wind — moving air
  23. lash — to lash out
  24. patient — a sick person

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