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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: ball · shower · patient · perch · arm · kid · rule · safe

  1. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  2. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  3. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  4. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  5. My father caught me by the ________________.
  6. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  7. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  8. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  9. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  10. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  11. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  12. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  13. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  14. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  15. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  16. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  17. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  18. The King held a masked ________________.
  19. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  20. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  21. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  22. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  23. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  24. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a round shape
  2. rule — government
  3. ball — a great time
  4. shower — to wash
  5. arm — part of the body
  6. shower — a meteor shower
  7. safe — a strongbox
  8. arm — part of the body
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. shower — rain
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. safe — out of danger
  13. arm — a part of something
  14. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  15. perch — the fish
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. rule — a law
  18. ball — a dance
  19. patient — a sick person
  20. safe — out of danger
  21. kid — to tease
  22. patient — calm and waiting
  23. kid — child
  24. rule — to rule out

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