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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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 · drill · cap · clip · shower · staff · arm

  1. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  2. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  3. My father caught me by the ________________.
  4. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  5. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  6. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  7. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  8. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  9. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  10. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  11. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  12. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  13. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  14. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  15. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  16. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  17. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  18. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  19. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  20. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  21. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  22. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  23. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  24. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.

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

Answer key

  1. can — a tin
  2. arm — a part of something
  3. arm — part of the body
  4. staff — employees
  5. shower — to wash
  6. drill — a practice
  7. clip — a video
  8. clip — to cut
  9. clip — for paper
  10. cap — a hat
  11. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  12. cap — a lid
  13. can — a tin
  14. staff — a stick
  15. arm — part of the body
  16. cap — of ice
  17. staff — employees
  18. drill — the tool
  19. shower — rain
  20. can — to be able to
  21. shower — a meteor shower
  22. kid — child
  23. kid — to tease
  24. drill — army training

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