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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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  2. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  3. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  4. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  5. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  6. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  7. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  8. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  9. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  10. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  11. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  12. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  13. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  14. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  15. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  16. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  17. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  18. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  19. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  20. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  21. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  22. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  23. That was ________________ to happen.
  24. We are ________________ to obey laws.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — child
  2. pound — for dogs
  3. fall — to drop
  4. fall — to drop
  5. fork — to eat with
  6. kick — in football
  7. pound — to hit hard
  8. fork — a garden tool
  9. pound — a weight
  10. fork — in a road
  11. fall — the season
  12. capital — money
  13. prune — to trim
  14. capital — a big letter
  15. bound — tied together
  16. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  17. kid — to tease
  18. prune — to trim
  19. prune — the fruit
  20. capital — a city
  21. kick — a thrill
  22. kick — with a leg
  23. bound — certain
  24. bound — obliged

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