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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: hand · kid · arm · foot · wound · squash · kick · ball

  1. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  2. The King held a masked ________________.
  3. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  4. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  5. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  6. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  7. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  8. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  9. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  10. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  11. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  12. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  13. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  14. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  15. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  16. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  17. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  18. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  19. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  20. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  21. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  22. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  23. My father caught me by the ________________.
  24. We ________________ up on opposing sides.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a round shape
  2. ball — a dance
  3. hand — help
  4. wound — an injury
  5. foot — a measure
  6. arm — a part of something
  7. arm — part of the body
  8. kick — with a leg
  9. wound — an injury
  10. kid — child
  11. foot — part of the body
  12. kid — to tease
  13. ball — a great time
  14. squash — the sport
  15. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  16. kick — in football
  17. squash — the vegetable
  18. kick — a thrill
  19. foot — the bottom
  20. hand — part of the body
  21. squash — to crush
  22. hand — in cards
  23. arm — part of the body
  24. wound — past of 'wind'

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