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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: pound · staff · land · kid · racket · foot · kick · band

  1. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  2. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  3. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  4. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  5. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  6. When are we going to ________________?
  7. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  8. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  9. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  10. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  11. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  12. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  13. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  14. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  15. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  16. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  17. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  18. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  19. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  20. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  21. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  22. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  23. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  24. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. band — a ring
  3. staff — employees
  4. band — a music group
  5. land — ground
  6. land — to come down
  7. kick — in football
  8. pound — to hit hard
  9. pound — a weight
  10. kick — with a leg
  11. kid — child
  12. kick — a thrill
  13. kid — to tease
  14. foot — the bottom
  15. staff — a stick
  16. foot — a measure
  17. band — a rubber band
  18. land — a country
  19. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  20. racket — a loud noise
  21. foot — part of the body
  22. pound — for dogs
  23. staff — employees
  24. racket — for tennis

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