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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: cell · club · shower · patient · lash · calf

  1. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  2. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  3. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  4. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  5. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  6. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  7. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  8. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  9. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  10. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  11. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  12. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  13. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  14. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  15. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  16. He was locked up in a ________________.
  17. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  18. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — to wash
  2. club — for dancing
  3. calf — a young animal
  4. patient — calm and waiting
  5. lash — an eyelash
  6. shower — rain
  7. club — for golf
  8. cell — in biology
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. shower — a meteor shower
  11. lash — a whip stroke
  12. calf — of the leg
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. club — a group
  15. lash — to lash out
  16. cell — in a prison
  17. cell — a phone
  18. calf — a young animal

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