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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.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
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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: bay · last · can · kick · saw · kid · season · land

  1. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  2. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  3. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  4. False peace will not ________________.
  5. She's very handy with a ________________.
  6. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  7. He works in a ________________ mill.
  8. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  9. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  10. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  11. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  12. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  13. My mare is ________________ in color.
  14. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  15. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  16. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  17. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  18. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  19. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  20. Did you ________________ the meat?
  21. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  22. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  23. When are we going to ________________?
  24. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — child
  2. land — a country
  3. kick — with a leg
  4. last — to go on
  5. saw — the tool
  6. bay — a part of the sea
  7. saw — the tool
  8. saw — past of 'see'
  9. last — finally
  10. season — in sport
  11. kick — a thrill
  12. kick — in football
  13. bay — a horse colour
  14. land — ground
  15. kid — to tease
  16. can — to be able to
  17. season — of the year
  18. bay — to keep at bay
  19. last — final
  20. season — to add flavour
  21. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  22. can — a tin
  23. land — to come down
  24. can — a tin

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