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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: fall · kick · root · bat · perch · ground · pit · wave

  1. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  2. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  3. There's no middle ________________.
  4. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  5. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  6. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  7. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  8. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  9. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  10. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  11. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  12. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  13. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  14. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  15. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  16. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  17. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  18. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  19. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  20. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  21. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  22. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  23. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  24. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a fruit stone
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. ground — a position
  4. fall — to drop
  5. ground — the earth
  6. perch — the fish
  7. bat — in an idiom
  8. kick — a thrill
  9. pit — a hole
  10. wave — with your hand
  11. root — of a plant
  12. ground — crushed
  13. wave — of the sea
  14. bat — the animal
  15. kick — in football
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. bat — for baseball
  18. kick — with a leg
  19. wave — a sudden rise
  20. root — of a word
  21. root — the cause
  22. fall — to drop
  23. pit — in a race
  24. fall — the season

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