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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: hand · pop · shower · bear · lash · calf · capital · fork

  1. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  2. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  3. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  4. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  5. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  6. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  7. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  8. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  9. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  10. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  11. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  12. We're almost out of ________________.
  13. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  14. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  15. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  16. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  17. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  18. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  19. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  20. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  21. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  22. You don't need to ________________ round.
  23. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  24. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — part of the body
  2. lash — to lash out
  3. hand — in cards
  4. calf — of the leg
  5. hand — help
  6. calf — a young animal
  7. fork — a garden tool
  8. calf — a young animal
  9. fork — in a road
  10. fork — to eat with
  11. bear — the animal
  12. pop — soda
  13. lash — an eyelash
  14. shower — to wash
  15. shower — rain
  16. bear — to put up with
  17. bear — the animal
  18. capital — money
  19. capital — a big letter
  20. lash — a whip stroke
  21. pop — music
  22. pop — to visit
  23. capital — a city
  24. shower — a meteor shower

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