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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: ground · cell · chip · pop · file · shower · fall · coach

  1. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  2. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  3. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  4. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  5. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  6. You don't need to ________________ round.
  7. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  8. We're almost out of ________________.
  9. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  10. He was locked up in a ________________.
  11. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  12. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  13. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  14. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  15. Have you met the new head ________________?
  16. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  17. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  18. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  19. There's no middle ________________.
  20. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  21. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  22. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  23. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  24. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a line of people
  2. shower — rain
  3. fall — the season
  4. shower — to wash
  5. shower — a meteor shower
  6. pop — to visit
  7. cell — in biology
  8. pop — soda
  9. chip — for betting
  10. cell — in a prison
  11. chip — in a computer
  12. file — a document
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. coach — pulled by horses
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. fall — to drop
  17. pop — music
  18. file — a tool
  19. ground — a position
  20. ground — crushed
  21. cell — a phone
  22. chip — to eat
  23. fall — to drop
  24. ground — the earth

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