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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: net · chip · tear · shower · pass · scale · pitcher · leaves

  1. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  2. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  3. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  4. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  5. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  6. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  7. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  8. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  9. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  10. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  11. He is an ace ________________.
  12. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  13. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  14. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  15. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  16. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  17. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  18. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  19. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  20. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  21. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  22. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  23. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  24. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. chip — in a computer
  4. chip — for betting
  5. pass — to succeed
  6. shower — a meteor shower
  7. leaves — lets stay
  8. net — for catching
  9. net — after costs
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. pitcher — in baseball
  12. shower — to wash
  13. leaves — of a tree
  14. pass — to spend time
  15. scale — in music
  16. leaves — to go away
  17. scale — for weighing
  18. chip — to eat
  19. tear — to rip
  20. net — in sport
  21. shower — rain
  22. pass — a permit
  23. scale — size or range
  24. tear — from crying

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