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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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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 · row · perch · stick · kid · game · wax · shower

  1. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  2. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  3. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  4. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  5. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  6. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  7. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  8. That was a fun ________________.
  9. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  10. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  11. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  12. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  13. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  14. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  15. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  16. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  17. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  18. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  19. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  20. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  21. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  22. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  23. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  24. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a quarrel
  2. kid — to tease
  3. kick — with a leg
  4. wax — to grow
  5. kick — a thrill
  6. wax — in the ear
  7. stick — to attach or keep to
  8. game — a match
  9. shower — a meteor shower
  10. shower — to wash
  11. stick — a piece of wood
  12. row — to paddle
  13. kid — child
  14. game — wild animals
  15. stick — a piece of wood
  16. perch — the fish
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. row — a line
  19. shower — rain
  20. game — a kind of play
  21. kick — in football
  22. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. wax — for sculpting

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