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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: shower · cold · fan · arm · pop · rest · calf · racket

  1. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  2. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  3. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  4. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  5. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  6. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  7. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  8. The water is too ________________.
  9. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  10. My father caught me by the ________________.
  11. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  12. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  13. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  14. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  15. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  16. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  17. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  18. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  19. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  20. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  21. We're almost out of ________________.
  22. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  23. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  24. You don't need to ________________ round.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — the Cold War
  2. rest — what's left
  3. shower — to wash
  4. calf — of the leg
  5. shower — rain
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. racket — for tennis
  8. cold — not warm
  9. pop — music
  10. arm — part of the body
  11. racket — for tennis
  12. shower — a meteor shower
  13. racket — a loud noise
  14. rest — what's left
  15. arm — part of the body
  16. calf — a young animal
  17. arm — a part of something
  18. cold — an illness
  19. rest — a break
  20. fan — to cool the air
  21. pop — soda
  22. calf — a young animal
  23. fan — a supporter
  24. pop — to visit

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