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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 116 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: degree · deal · lean · lash · game · shower · hand · file

  1. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  2. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  3. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  4. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  5. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  6. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  7. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  8. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  9. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  10. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  11. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  12. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  13. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  14. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  15. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  16. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  17. That was a fun ________________.
  18. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  19. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  20. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  21. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  22. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  23. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  24. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — an eyelash
  2. file — a line of people
  3. lean — to rest against
  4. shower — rain
  5. game — wild animals
  6. hand — part of the body
  7. degree — from a university
  8. game — a kind of play
  9. lash — a whip stroke
  10. file — a document
  11. shower — a meteor shower
  12. degree — an amount
  13. deal — a big deal
  14. hand — in cards
  15. hand — help
  16. lash — to lash out
  17. game — a match
  18. deal — an agreement
  19. file — a tool
  20. lean — to bend
  21. shower — to wash
  22. deal — to handle
  23. lean — thin
  24. degree — temperature

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