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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: kid · tube · date · rash · cap · foot · bark · shower

  1. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  2. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  3. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  4. I'll be taking the ________________.
  5. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  6. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  7. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  8. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  9. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  10. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  11. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  12. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  13. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  14. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  15. Don't do anything ________________.
  16. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  17. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  18. Have you settled on a ________________?
  19. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  20. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  21. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  22. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  23. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  24. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — of ice
  2. bark — to shout
  3. shower — rain
  4. tube — the underground
  5. kid — child
  6. rash — on the skin
  7. shower — to wash
  8. foot — a measure
  9. foot — part of the body
  10. shower — a meteor shower
  11. bark — of a tree
  12. tube — a container
  13. kid — to tease
  14. cap — a hat
  15. rash — hasty
  16. bark — a dog's sound
  17. rash — a series
  18. date — on the calendar
  19. foot — the bottom
  20. cap — a lid
  21. date — the fruit
  22. date — on the calendar
  23. tube — in a tire
  24. kid — young goat (kid gloves)

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