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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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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: lean · race · wound · tear · shower · key · lie · chip

  1. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  2. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  3. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  4. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  5. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  6. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  7. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  8. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  9. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  10. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  11. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  12. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  13. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  14. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  15. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  16. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  17. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  18. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  19. This piece is in a major ________________.
  20. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  21. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  22. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  23. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  24. We took cover from the thunder ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — thin
  2. lie — an untruth
  3. shower — to wash
  4. chip — to eat
  5. chip — in a computer
  6. key — for a lock
  7. lie — to recline
  8. lean — to bend
  9. key — the most important part
  10. race — a contest
  11. wound — past of 'wind'
  12. tear — from crying
  13. tear — to rip
  14. lie — an untruth
  15. wound — an injury
  16. lean — to rest against
  17. wound — an injury
  18. chip — for betting
  19. key — in music
  20. tear — from crying
  21. shower — a meteor shower
  22. race — the arms race
  23. race — humankind
  24. shower — rain

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