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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: roll · wind · cell · bowl · chair · chip · jam · shower

  1. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  2. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  3. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  4. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  5. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  6. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  7. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  8. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  9. We're on a ________________ here.
  10. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  11. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  12. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  13. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  14. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  15. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  16. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  17. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  18. He was locked up in a ________________.
  19. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  20. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  21. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  22. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  23. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  24. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — to wash
  2. bowl — to roll
  3. cell — in biology
  4. shower — rain
  5. chair — a leader
  6. jam — a tight spot
  7. wind — moving air
  8. bowl — a dish
  9. roll — on a roll
  10. wind — to turn a key
  11. roll — a list
  12. chair — to sit on
  13. chip — in a computer
  14. wind — moving air
  15. shower — a meteor shower
  16. cell — a phone
  17. chair — a professorship
  18. cell — in a prison
  19. chip — to eat
  20. roll — a cake
  21. bowl — a football final
  22. chip — for betting
  23. jam — to spread on bread
  24. jam — in traffic

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