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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: date · shower · game · rush · mark · calf · bear · arm

  1. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  2. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  3. That must've been a ________________.
  4. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  5. That was a fun ________________.
  6. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  7. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  8. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  9. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  10. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  11. My father caught me by the ________________.
  12. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  13. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  14. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  15. Have you settled on a ________________?
  16. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  17. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  18. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  19. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  20. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  21. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  22. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  23. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  24. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — to hurry
  2. arm — part of the body
  3. rush — a thrill
  4. calf — a young animal
  5. game — a match
  6. date — on the calendar
  7. game — a kind of play
  8. shower — to wash
  9. game — wild animals
  10. calf — a young animal
  11. arm — part of the body
  12. date — the fruit
  13. shower — a meteor shower
  14. calf — of the leg
  15. date — on the calendar
  16. bear — to put up with
  17. bear — the animal
  18. shower — rain
  19. bear — the animal
  20. arm — a part of something
  21. mark — a trace
  22. mark — a grade
  23. rush — hurry
  24. mark — to pay attention

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