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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 116 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: fall · kick · pit · trunk · shower · ball · wake · fine

  1. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  2. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  3. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  4. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  5. The King held a masked ________________.
  6. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  7. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  8. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  9. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  10. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  11. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  12. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  13. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  14. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  15. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  16. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  17. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  18. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  19. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  20. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  21. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  22. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  23. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  24. The elephant has a huge ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a great time
  2. kick — with a leg
  3. fine — all right
  4. shower — to wash
  5. ball — a dance
  6. pit — a fruit stone
  7. kick — a thrill
  8. ball — a round shape
  9. fine — a penalty
  10. fall — the season
  11. wake — a trail
  12. fall — to drop
  13. pit — a hole
  14. trunk — of a tree
  15. pit — in a race
  16. wake — before a funeral
  17. shower — rain
  18. fine — high quality
  19. trunk — of a car
  20. shower — a meteor shower
  21. fall — to drop
  22. kick — in football
  23. wake — to stop sleeping
  24. trunk — of an elephant

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