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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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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: kick · race · kid · pit · content · chair

  1. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  2. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  3. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  4. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  5. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  6. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  7. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  8. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  9. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  10. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  11. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  12. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  13. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  14. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  15. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  16. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  17. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  18. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — to tease
  2. kid — child
  3. chair — to sit on
  4. race — humankind
  5. content — happy
  6. kick — in football
  7. kick — a thrill
  8. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  9. race — the arms race
  10. pit — in a race
  11. kick — with a leg
  12. pit — a hole
  13. chair — a leader
  14. pit — a fruit stone
  15. chair — a professorship
  16. race — a contest
  17. content — the amount
  18. content — videos and posts

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