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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: shower · straw · tear · mouse · bay · hand · chip · present

  1. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  2. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  3. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  4. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  5. My mare is ________________ in color.
  6. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  7. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  8. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  9. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  10. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  11. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  12. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  13. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  14. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  15. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  16. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  17. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  18. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  19. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  20. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  21. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  22. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  23. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  24. Should I buy a wireless ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. straw — a straw man
  2. tear — from crying
  3. shower — a meteor shower
  4. bay — to keep at bay
  5. bay — a horse colour
  6. chip — in a computer
  7. straw — dry grass
  8. present — the time now
  9. present — a gift
  10. straw — to clutch at straws
  11. shower — rain
  12. tear — from crying
  13. chip — for betting
  14. mouse — the animal
  15. bay — a part of the sea
  16. chip — to eat
  17. shower — to wash
  18. hand — in cards
  19. hand — help
  20. hand — part of the body
  21. present — there
  22. mouse — the animal
  23. tear — to rip
  24. mouse — for a computer

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