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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. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  3. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  4. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  5. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  6. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  7. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  8. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  9. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  10. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  11. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  12. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  13. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  14. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  15. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  16. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  17. My mare is ________________ in color.
  18. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  19. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  20. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  21. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  22. My father caught me by the ________________.
  23. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  24. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — rain
  2. arm — part of the body
  3. mark — to pay attention
  4. content — videos and posts
  5. march — music
  6. content — the amount
  7. arm — a part of something
  8. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  9. content — happy
  10. shower — to wash
  11. kid — to tease
  12. mark — a grade
  13. bay — to keep at bay
  14. lash — to lash out
  15. mark — a trace
  16. march — the month
  17. bay — a horse colour
  18. lash — a whip stroke
  19. bay — a part of the sea
  20. lash — an eyelash
  21. march — the month
  22. arm — part of the body
  23. shower — a meteor shower
  24. kid — child

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