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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 120 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: last · cap · kid · scale · court · fall · net · kick

  1. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  2. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  3. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  4. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  5. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  6. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  7. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  8. False peace will not ________________.
  9. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  10. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  11. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  12. The ball is in your ________________.
  13. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  14. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  15. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  16. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  17. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  18. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  19. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  20. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  21. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  22. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  23. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  24. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — in football
  2. scale — size or range
  3. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  4. kick — with a leg
  5. net — for catching
  6. fall — to drop
  7. net — in sport
  8. last — to go on
  9. net — after costs
  10. last — finally
  11. scale — for weighing
  12. court — for sport
  13. cap — a hat
  14. kid — to tease
  15. cap — a lid
  16. court — of law
  17. fall — the season
  18. kick — a thrill
  19. fall — to drop
  20. cap — of ice
  21. court — of a king
  22. last — final
  23. scale — in music
  24. kid — child

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