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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: squash · object · shower · foot · pitcher · lean · net · kid

  1. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  2. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  3. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  4. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  5. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  6. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  7. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  8. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  9. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  10. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  11. He is an ace ________________.
  12. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  13. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  14. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  15. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  16. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  17. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  18. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  19. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  20. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  21. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  22. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  23. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  24. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.

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

Answer key

  1. object — an aim
  2. object — to protest
  3. shower — rain
  4. kid — to tease
  5. foot — a measure
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. lean — to bend
  8. lean — thin
  9. squash — the sport
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. pitcher — in baseball
  12. net — after costs
  13. lean — to rest against
  14. foot — the bottom
  15. net — for catching
  16. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  17. shower — a meteor shower
  18. foot — part of the body
  19. kid — child
  20. squash — to crush
  21. net — in sport
  22. shower — to wash
  23. object — a thing
  24. squash — the vegetable

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