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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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: cell · arm · press · shower · net · row · lean · kick

  1. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  2. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  3. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  4. He was locked up in a ________________.
  5. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  6. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  7. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  8. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  9. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  10. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  11. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  12. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  13. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  14. Did you ________________ the button?
  15. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  16. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  17. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  18. My father caught me by the ________________.
  19. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  20. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  21. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  22. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  23. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  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. net — for catching
  2. lean — to bend
  3. shower — a meteor shower
  4. cell — in a prison
  5. kick — with a leg
  6. net — in sport
  7. shower — rain
  8. arm — part of the body
  9. cell — in biology
  10. press — a publisher
  11. row — a quarrel
  12. lean — thin
  13. press — newspapers
  14. press — to push
  15. cell — a phone
  16. shower — to wash
  17. lean — to rest against
  18. arm — part of the body
  19. kick — in football
  20. row — to paddle
  21. row — a line
  22. kick — a thrill
  23. net — after costs
  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