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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: kid · can · cell · shower · rash · arm · content · wake

  1. My father caught me by the ________________.
  2. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  3. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  4. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  5. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  6. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  7. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  8. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  9. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  10. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  11. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  12. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  13. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  14. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  15. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  16. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  17. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  18. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  19. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  20. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  21. Don't do anything ________________.
  22. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  23. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  24. He was locked up in a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — part of the body
  2. shower — rain
  3. wake — to stop sleeping
  4. content — the amount
  5. can — a tin
  6. rash — a series
  7. cell — a phone
  8. can — a tin
  9. rash — on the skin
  10. kid — child
  11. shower — to wash
  12. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  13. arm — part of the body
  14. shower — a meteor shower
  15. wake — a trail
  16. cell — in biology
  17. wake — before a funeral
  18. arm — a part of something
  19. content — videos and posts
  20. kid — to tease
  21. rash — hasty
  22. content — happy
  23. can — to be able to
  24. cell — in a prison

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