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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: tear · fork · fall · kick · pitcher · kid · cap · lie

  1. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  2. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  3. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  4. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  5. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  6. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  7. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  8. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  9. He is an ace ________________.
  10. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  11. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  12. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  13. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  14. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  15. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  16. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  17. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  18. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  19. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  20. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  21. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  22. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  23. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  24. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.

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

Answer key

  1. lie — an untruth
  2. cap — a lid
  3. tear — from crying
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. fall — to drop
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. cap — of ice
  8. cap — a hat
  9. pitcher — in baseball
  10. tear — to rip
  11. fork — a garden tool
  12. fork — to eat with
  13. fork — in a road
  14. kid — child
  15. kid — to tease
  16. lie — to recline
  17. fall — to drop
  18. tear — from crying
  19. kick — a thrill
  20. kick — in football
  21. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  22. lie — an untruth
  23. fall — the season
  24. kick — with a leg

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