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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: hide · pop · wake · chair · season · roll · shower · arm

  1. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  2. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  3. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  4. Did you ________________ the meat?
  5. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  6. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  7. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  8. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  9. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  10. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  11. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  12. We're on a ________________ here.
  13. My father caught me by the ________________.
  14. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  15. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  16. You don't need to ________________ round.
  17. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  18. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  19. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  20. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  21. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  22. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  23. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  24. We're almost out of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. roll — a cake
  2. chair — a professorship
  3. arm — part of the body
  4. season — to add flavour
  5. season — in sport
  6. shower — rain
  7. shower — to wash
  8. wake — a trail
  9. chair — to sit on
  10. wake — before a funeral
  11. roll — a list
  12. roll — on a roll
  13. arm — part of the body
  14. chair — a leader
  15. wake — to stop sleeping
  16. pop — to visit
  17. hide — animal skin
  18. hide — to keep secret
  19. arm — a part of something
  20. shower — a meteor shower
  21. pop — music
  22. hide — to keep secret
  23. season — of the year
  24. pop — soda

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