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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 · cap · nail · chair · plane · present · file · stick

  1. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  2. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  3. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  4. The ________________ went through the wall.
  5. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  6. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  7. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  8. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  9. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  10. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  11. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  12. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  13. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  14. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  15. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  16. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  17. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  18. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  19. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  20. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  21. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  22. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  23. The ________________ took off on time.
  24. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a leader
  2. file — a document
  3. cap — a hat
  4. nail — for a hammer
  5. plane — in geometry
  6. present — there
  7. chair — a professorship
  8. stick — a piece of wood
  9. nail — on a finger
  10. stick — a piece of wood
  11. cap — a lid
  12. present — the time now
  13. shower — rain
  14. present — a gift
  15. shower — to wash
  16. plane — a tool
  17. stick — to attach or keep to
  18. file — a tool
  19. cap — of ice
  20. file — a line of people
  21. nail — for a hammer
  22. chair — to sit on
  23. plane — an aircraft
  24. shower — a meteor shower

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