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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 · pop · hand · lash · patient · chip · key · ground

  1. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  2. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  3. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  4. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  5. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  6. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  7. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  8. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  9. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  10. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  11. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  12. We're almost out of ________________.
  13. There's no middle ________________.
  14. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  15. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  16. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  17. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  18. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  19. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  20. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  21. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  22. This piece is in a major ________________.
  23. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  24. You don't need to ________________ round.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — to lash out
  2. chip — in a computer
  3. hand — part of the body
  4. ground — crushed
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. key — the most important part
  7. pop — music
  8. shower — rain
  9. lash — a whip stroke
  10. hand — help
  11. chip — to eat
  12. pop — soda
  13. ground — a position
  14. hand — in cards
  15. lash — an eyelash
  16. chip — for betting
  17. key — for a lock
  18. shower — to wash
  19. ground — the earth
  20. patient — calm and waiting
  21. shower — a meteor shower
  22. key — in music
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. pop — to visit

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