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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: shower · kick · band · kid · court · pit · suit · face

  1. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  2. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  3. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  4. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  5. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  6. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  7. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  8. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  9. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  10. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  11. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  12. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  13. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  14. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  15. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  16. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  17. When will it ________________ you to start?
  18. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  19. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  20. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  21. The ball is in your ________________.
  22. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  23. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  24. Boris sat near the fire ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — in football
  2. kid — child
  3. kid — to tease
  4. face — to confront
  5. court — of a king
  6. kick — with a leg
  7. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  8. court — of law
  9. pit — a fruit stone
  10. face — part of the head
  11. suit — clothes
  12. suit — in cards
  13. shower — a meteor shower
  14. band — a ring
  15. band — a music group
  16. shower — to wash
  17. suit — to fit
  18. face — to point toward
  19. band — a rubber band
  20. kick — a thrill
  21. court — for sport
  22. shower — rain
  23. pit — in a race
  24. pit — a hole

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