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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 120 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 · calf · fall · pitch · shower · perch · kid · hand

  1. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  2. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  3. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  4. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  5. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  6. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  7. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  8. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  9. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  10. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  11. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  12. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  13. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  14. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  15. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  16. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  17. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  18. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  19. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  20. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  21. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  22. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  23. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  24. He had ________________ pain while walking.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — the season
  2. craft — a skill
  3. craft — boats
  4. perch — the fish
  5. shower — a meteor shower
  6. craft — a handicraft
  7. hand — help
  8. pitch — a sales talk
  9. calf — a young animal
  10. pitch — completely
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. kid — to tease
  13. pitch — a sports field
  14. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  15. calf — a young animal
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. shower — to wash
  18. kid — child
  19. fall — to drop
  20. hand — part of the body
  21. fall — to drop
  22. shower — rain
  23. hand — in cards
  24. calf — of the leg

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