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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: craft · kick · straw · saw · date · mug · arm · shower

  1. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  2. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  3. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  4. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  5. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  6. My father caught me by the ________________.
  7. Have you settled on a ________________?
  8. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  9. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  10. Where did you ________________ them?
  11. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  12. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  13. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  14. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  15. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  16. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  17. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  18. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  19. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  20. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  21. She's very handy with a ________________.
  22. He works in a ________________ mill.
  23. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  24. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — rain
  2. craft — a handicraft
  3. mug — a face
  4. mug — a cup
  5. shower — a meteor shower
  6. arm — part of the body
  7. date — on the calendar
  8. craft — boats
  9. straw — a straw man
  10. mug — to rob
  11. kick — a thrill
  12. craft — a skill
  13. date — on the calendar
  14. shower — to wash
  15. arm — part of the body
  16. straw — dry grass
  17. arm — a part of something
  18. kick — with a leg
  19. date — the fruit
  20. kick — in football
  21. saw — the tool
  22. saw — the tool
  23. saw — past of 'see'
  24. straw — to clutch at straws

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