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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: kick · shower · squash · date · arm · foot

  1. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  2. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  3. My father caught me by the ________________.
  4. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  5. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  6. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  7. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  8. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  9. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  10. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  11. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  12. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  13. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  14. Have you settled on a ________________?
  15. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  16. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  17. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  18. He's taking a ________________ right now.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — part of the body
  2. squash — to crush
  3. arm — part of the body
  4. kick — in football
  5. shower — rain
  6. squash — the vegetable
  7. kick — with a leg
  8. date — the fruit
  9. arm — a part of something
  10. date — on the calendar
  11. foot — the bottom
  12. foot — a measure
  13. foot — part of the body
  14. date — on the calendar
  15. squash — the sport
  16. kick — a thrill
  17. shower — a meteor shower
  18. shower — to wash

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