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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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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: bass · hand · bore · lean · chip · shower · deal · file

  1. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  2. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  3. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  4. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  5. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  6. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  7. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  8. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  9. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  10. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  11. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  12. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  13. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  14. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  15. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  16. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  17. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  18. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  19. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  20. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  21. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  22. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  23. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  24. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — low music
  2. shower — a meteor shower
  3. deal — an agreement
  4. deal — a big deal
  5. lean — to bend
  6. bass — the fish
  7. chip — to eat
  8. chip — for betting
  9. chip — in a computer
  10. file — a tool
  11. bore — to drill
  12. bore — to tire
  13. hand — part of the body
  14. lean — thin
  15. file — a line of people
  16. bore — gave birth
  17. lean — to rest against
  18. hand — in cards
  19. file — a document
  20. shower — rain
  21. shower — to wash
  22. bass — the instrument
  23. hand — help
  24. deal — to handle

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