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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: date · kid · shower · bat · face · foot · bear · rush

  1. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  2. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  3. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  4. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  5. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  6. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  7. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  8. Have you settled on a ________________?
  9. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  10. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  11. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  12. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  13. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  14. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  15. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  16. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  17. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  18. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  19. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  20. That must've been a ________________.
  21. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  22. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  23. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  24. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  2. face — part of the head
  3. shower — a meteor shower
  4. bat — in an idiom
  5. kid — child
  6. face — to point toward
  7. kid — to tease
  8. date — on the calendar
  9. bear — the animal
  10. rush — to hurry
  11. bat — the animal
  12. bear — to put up with
  13. shower — to wash
  14. shower — rain
  15. date — the fruit
  16. foot — part of the body
  17. date — on the calendar
  18. rush — hurry
  19. bear — the animal
  20. rush — a thrill
  21. foot — the bottom
  22. bat — for baseball
  23. face — to confront
  24. foot — a measure

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