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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: ground · bear · race · kick · fall · foot · kid · perch

  1. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  2. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  3. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  4. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  5. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  6. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  7. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  8. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  9. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  10. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  11. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  12. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  13. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  14. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  15. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  16. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  17. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  18. There's no middle ________________.
  19. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  20. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  21. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  22. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  23. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  24. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. kick — with a leg
  3. bear — the animal
  4. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  5. fall — to drop
  6. race — a contest
  7. kick — a thrill
  8. ground — crushed
  9. foot — the bottom
  10. ground — the earth
  11. kick — in football
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. kid — child
  14. kid — to tease
  15. fall — the season
  16. perch — the fish
  17. bear — the animal
  18. ground — a position
  19. race — the arms race
  20. foot — part of the body
  21. race — humankind
  22. bear — to put up with
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. foot — a measure

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