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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 120 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: hand · land · fine · arm · spring · foot · rash · squash

  1. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  2. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  3. My father caught me by the ________________.
  4. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  5. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  6. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  7. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  8. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  9. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  10. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  11. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  12. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  13. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  14. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  15. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  16. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  17. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  18. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  19. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  20. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  21. When are we going to ________________?
  22. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  23. Don't do anything ________________.
  24. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — a series
  2. hand — part of the body
  3. arm — part of the body
  4. fine — high quality
  5. arm — a part of something
  6. squash — the sport
  7. fine — a penalty
  8. rash — on the skin
  9. squash — to crush
  10. land — ground
  11. squash — the vegetable
  12. spring — the season
  13. fine — all right
  14. spring — a coil
  15. foot — part of the body
  16. foot — a measure
  17. arm — part of the body
  18. hand — in cards
  19. hand — help
  20. foot — the bottom
  21. land — to come down
  22. land — a country
  23. rash — hasty
  24. spring — of water

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