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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: shower · cold · stick · band · chip · fine · saw · bulb

  1. She's very handy with a ________________.
  2. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  3. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  4. The water is too ________________.
  5. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  6. I've got to change the light ________________.
  7. The light ________________ burned out.
  8. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  9. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  10. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  11. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  12. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  13. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  14. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  15. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  16. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  17. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  18. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  19. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  20. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  21. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  22. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  23. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  24. He works in a ________________ mill.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. chip — in a computer
  3. shower — rain
  4. cold — not warm
  5. cold — an illness
  6. bulb — for light
  7. bulb — for light
  8. stick — to attach or keep to
  9. cold — the Cold War
  10. fine — high quality
  11. chip — for betting
  12. shower — a meteor shower
  13. fine — a penalty
  14. band — a music group
  15. chip — to eat
  16. band — a ring
  17. bulb — of a plant
  18. fine — all right
  19. saw — past of 'see'
  20. stick — a piece of wood
  21. shower — to wash
  22. stick — a piece of wood
  23. band — a rubber band
  24. saw — the tool

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