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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: date · jam · chip · shower · chest · cell · pound · bear

  1. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  2. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  3. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  4. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  5. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  6. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  7. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  8. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  9. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  10. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  11. He was locked up in a ________________.
  12. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  13. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  14. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  15. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  16. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  17. Have you settled on a ________________?
  18. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  19. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  20. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  21. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  22. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  23. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  24. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — rain
  2. bear — the animal
  3. date — on the calendar
  4. bear — to put up with
  5. chip — for betting
  6. cell — in biology
  7. chest — of your body
  8. chest — a box
  9. jam — to spread on bread
  10. chest — of your body
  11. cell — in a prison
  12. shower — to wash
  13. shower — a meteor shower
  14. pound — to hit hard
  15. jam — in traffic
  16. pound — a weight
  17. date — on the calendar
  18. cell — a phone
  19. bear — the animal
  20. chip — in a computer
  21. jam — a tight spot
  22. chip — to eat
  23. pound — for dogs
  24. date — the fruit

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