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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: kid · kick · pit · perch · nail · tube · fall · coach

  1. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  2. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  3. I'll be taking the ________________.
  4. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  5. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  6. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  7. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  8. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  9. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  10. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  11. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  12. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  13. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  14. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  15. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  16. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  17. Have you met the new head ________________?
  18. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  19. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  20. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  21. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  22. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  23. The ________________ went through the wall.
  24. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a fruit stone
  2. tube — in a tire
  3. tube — the underground
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. fall — the season
  6. kick — a thrill
  7. perch — for a bird
  8. kick — in football
  9. nail — on a finger
  10. fall — to drop
  11. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  12. nail — for a hammer
  13. kid — to tease
  14. tube — a container
  15. pit — in a race
  16. fall — to drop
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. kick — with a leg
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. pit — a hole
  21. coach — pulled by horses
  22. kid — child
  23. nail — for a hammer
  24. perch — the fish

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