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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: arm · pitch · face · shower · kick · bear · racket · wake

  1. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  2. My father caught me by the ________________.
  3. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  4. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  5. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  6. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  7. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  8. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  9. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  10. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  11. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  12. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  13. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  14. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  15. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  16. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  17. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  18. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  19. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  20. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  21. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  22. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  23. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  24. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — a loud noise
  2. arm — part of the body
  3. bear — to put up with
  4. shower — to wash
  5. wake — to stop sleeping
  6. racket — for tennis
  7. face — to confront
  8. wake — a trail
  9. pitch — completely
  10. racket — for tennis
  11. face — part of the head
  12. shower — rain
  13. pitch — a sports field
  14. bear — the animal
  15. arm — part of the body
  16. pitch — a sales talk
  17. wake — before a funeral
  18. kick — a thrill
  19. shower — a meteor shower
  20. face — to point toward
  21. bear — the animal
  22. kick — with a leg
  23. kick — in football
  24. arm — a part of something

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