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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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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: branch · fall · net · squash · kid · last · rest · shower

  1. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  2. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  3. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  4. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  5. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  6. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  7. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  8. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  9. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  10. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  11. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  12. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  13. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  14. False peace will not ________________.
  15. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  16. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  17. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  18. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  19. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  20. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  21. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  22. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  23. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  24. I would like to have a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the vegetable
  2. branch — of a bank
  3. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  4. shower — rain
  5. kid — child
  6. fall — to drop
  7. last — final
  8. squash — to crush
  9. branch — a division
  10. net — in sport
  11. net — for catching
  12. last — finally
  13. net — after costs
  14. last — to go on
  15. fall — the season
  16. rest — what's left
  17. fall — to drop
  18. shower — a meteor shower
  19. branch — of a tree
  20. kid — to tease
  21. rest — what's left
  22. shower — to wash
  23. squash — the sport
  24. rest — a break

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