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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 · shower · bore · bowl · clip · date · squash · kick

  1. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  2. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  3. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  4. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  5. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  6. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  7. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  8. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  9. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  10. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  11. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  12. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  13. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  14. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  15. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  16. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  17. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  18. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  19. Have you settled on a ________________?
  20. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  21. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  22. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  23. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  24. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — a handicraft
  2. shower — to wash
  3. shower — a meteor shower
  4. squash — the vegetable
  5. shower — rain
  6. bowl — a dish
  7. clip — for paper
  8. kick — with a leg
  9. bowl — a football final
  10. squash — to crush
  11. date — the fruit
  12. clip — to cut
  13. bore — to tire
  14. kick — a thrill
  15. bowl — to roll
  16. kick — in football
  17. craft — boats
  18. bore — gave birth
  19. date — on the calendar
  20. bore — to drill
  21. clip — a video
  22. squash — the sport
  23. date — on the calendar
  24. craft — a skill

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