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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: mug · dip · shower · kid · scale · arm · chest · trunk

  1. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  2. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  3. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  4. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  5. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  6. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  7. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  8. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  9. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  10. My father caught me by the ________________.
  11. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  12. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  13. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  14. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  15. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  16. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  17. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  18. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  19. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  20. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  21. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  22. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  23. Where did you ________________ them?
  24. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.

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

Answer key

  1. dip — a sauce
  2. trunk — of an elephant
  3. mug — a face
  4. chest — a box
  5. arm — part of the body
  6. scale — for weighing
  7. dip — to dunk
  8. shower — rain
  9. mug — a cup
  10. arm — part of the body
  11. chest — of your body
  12. kid — child
  13. kid — to tease
  14. trunk — of a car
  15. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  16. shower — to wash
  17. scale — size or range
  18. arm — a part of something
  19. scale — in music
  20. chest — of your body
  21. shower — a meteor shower
  22. dip — to sink
  23. mug — to rob
  24. trunk — of a tree

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