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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: cap · kid · rest · fall · perch · kick

  1. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  2. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  3. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  4. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  5. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  6. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  7. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  8. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  9. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  10. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  11. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  12. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  13. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  14. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  15. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  16. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  17. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  18. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — a thrill
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. fall — the season
  4. cap — a lid
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. cap — a hat
  7. perch — the fish
  8. fall — to drop
  9. rest — what's left
  10. rest — a break
  11. kick — in football
  12. rest — what's left
  13. fall — to drop
  14. cap — of ice
  15. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  16. kid — child
  17. kick — with a leg
  18. kid — to tease

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