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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: nail · bear · pit · row · leaves · kick · ground · kid

  1. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  2. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  3. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  4. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  5. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  6. The ________________ went through the wall.
  7. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  8. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  9. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  10. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  11. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  12. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  13. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  14. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  15. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  16. There's no middle ________________.
  17. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  18. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  19. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  20. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  21. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  22. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  23. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  24. The train ________________ at six o'clock.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a fruit stone
  2. leaves — of a tree
  3. nail — on a finger
  4. ground — crushed
  5. leaves — lets stay
  6. nail — for a hammer
  7. kid — to tease
  8. row — a quarrel
  9. bear — to put up with
  10. kick — in football
  11. kick — with a leg
  12. bear — the animal
  13. ground — the earth
  14. pit — in a race
  15. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  16. ground — a position
  17. kick — a thrill
  18. bear — the animal
  19. row — a line
  20. pit — a hole
  21. nail — for a hammer
  22. kid — child
  23. row — to paddle
  24. leaves — to go away

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