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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: bore · calf · shower · lash · arm · pit · snap · swing

  1. David sat on the ________________.
  2. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  3. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  4. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  5. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  6. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  7. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  8. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  9. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  10. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  11. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  12. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  13. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  14. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  15. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  16. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  17. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  18. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  19. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  20. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  21. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  22. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  23. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  24. My father caught me by the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — to play on
  2. arm — part of the body
  3. shower — to wash
  4. lash — to lash out
  5. bore — to tire
  6. snap — to snap out of it
  7. bore — to drill
  8. lash — a whip stroke
  9. pit — in a race
  10. calf — a young animal
  11. snap — to speak sharply
  12. pit — a hole
  13. pit — a fruit stone
  14. lash — an eyelash
  15. shower — a meteor shower
  16. snap — to click
  17. calf — a young animal
  18. swing — music
  19. shower — rain
  20. calf — of the leg
  21. bore — gave birth
  22. swing — in golf
  23. arm — a part of something
  24. arm — part of the body

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