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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. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  2. My father caught me by the ________________.
  3. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  4. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  5. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  6. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  7. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  8. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  9. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  10. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  11. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  12. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  13. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  14. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  15. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  16. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  17. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  18. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  19. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  20. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  21. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  22. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  23. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  24. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — a meteor shower
  2. arm — part of the body
  3. wind — moving air
  4. kick — in football
  5. arm — part of the body
  6. kid — child
  7. shower — rain
  8. wake — to stop sleeping
  9. fan — to cool the air
  10. kick — with a leg
  11. kick — a thrill
  12. shower — to wash
  13. wind — moving air
  14. wake — before a funeral
  15. wind — to turn a key
  16. wake — a trail
  17. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. bark — to shout
  20. bark — of a tree
  21. fan — a supporter
  22. kid — to tease
  23. bark — a dog's sound
  24. arm — a part of something

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