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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: pound · kid · row · kick · pop · hide

  1. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  2. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  3. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  4. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  5. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  6. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  7. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  8. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  9. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  10. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  11. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  12. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  13. You don't need to ________________ round.
  14. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  15. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  16. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  17. We're almost out of ________________.
  18. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.

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. kick — in football
  4. row — a line
  5. hide — animal skin
  6. row — a quarrel
  7. hide — to keep secret
  8. row — to paddle
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. kid — to tease
  11. pound — a weight
  12. kick — with a leg
  13. pop — to visit
  14. pound — to hit hard
  15. kick — a thrill
  16. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  17. pop — soda
  18. pop — music

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