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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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  2. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  3. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  4. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  5. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  6. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  7. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  8. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  9. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  10. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  11. Don't do anything ________________.
  12. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  13. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  14. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  15. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  16. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  17. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  18. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  19. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  20. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  21. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  22. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  23. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  24. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — rain
  2. bass — the fish
  3. bowl — to roll
  4. straw — to clutch at straws
  5. bowl — a dish
  6. rash — a series
  7. calf — of the leg
  8. straw — a straw man
  9. straw — dry grass
  10. shower — to wash
  11. rash — hasty
  12. bass — the instrument
  13. calf — a young animal
  14. bowl — a football final
  15. rash — on the skin
  16. kick — in football
  17. kick — a thrill
  18. chest — of your body
  19. chest — of your body
  20. calf — a young animal
  21. bass — low music
  22. chest — a box
  23. shower — a meteor shower
  24. kick — with a leg

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