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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: lean · game · dip · shower · squash · nail · date · perch

  1. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  2. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  3. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  4. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  5. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  6. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  7. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  8. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  9. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  10. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  11. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  12. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  13. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  14. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  15. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  16. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  17. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  18. Have you settled on a ________________?
  19. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  20. That was a fun ________________.
  21. The ________________ went through the wall.
  22. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  23. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  24. He's taking a ________________ right now.

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

Answer key

  1. dip — a sauce
  2. lean — thin
  3. lean — to rest against
  4. date — on the calendar
  5. squash — the sport
  6. squash — to crush
  7. dip — to dunk
  8. shower — a meteor shower
  9. squash — the vegetable
  10. date — the fruit
  11. shower — rain
  12. nail — for a hammer
  13. lean — to bend
  14. game — wild animals
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. dip — to sink
  17. game — a kind of play
  18. date — on the calendar
  19. nail — on a finger
  20. game — a match
  21. nail — for a hammer
  22. perch — the fish
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. shower — to wash

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