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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: club · file · shower · spring · pitcher · cabinet · chip · present

  1. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  2. He is an ace ________________.
  3. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  4. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  5. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  6. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  7. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  8. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  9. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  10. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  11. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  12. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  13. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  14. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  15. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  16. What do you think of the new ________________?
  17. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  18. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  19. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  20. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  21. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  22. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  23. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  24. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. present — a gift
  2. pitcher — in baseball
  3. file — a document
  4. shower — rain
  5. present — there
  6. chip — in a computer
  7. chip — to eat
  8. spring — a coil
  9. present — the time now
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. cabinet — a cupboard
  12. chip — for betting
  13. club — for dancing
  14. cabinet — ministers
  15. shower — to wash
  16. cabinet — ministers
  17. file — a tool
  18. club — for golf
  19. shower — a meteor shower
  20. file — a line of people
  21. club — a group
  22. spring — the season
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. spring — of water

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