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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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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: land · kick · tube · game · kid · charge · stick · march

  1. I'll be taking the ________________.
  2. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  3. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  4. When are we going to ________________?
  5. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  6. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  7. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  8. The tickets are free of ________________.
  9. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  10. That was a fun ________________.
  11. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  12. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  13. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  14. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  15. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  16. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  17. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  18. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  19. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  20. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  21. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  22. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  23. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  24. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — the underground
  2. kick — with a leg
  3. march — the month
  4. land — to come down
  5. stick — a piece of wood
  6. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  7. kick — in football
  8. charge — a price
  9. kid — child
  10. game — a match
  11. land — ground
  12. march — music
  13. tube — a container
  14. stick — a piece of wood
  15. charge — electricity
  16. stick — to attach or keep to
  17. land — a country
  18. game — wild animals
  19. kick — a thrill
  20. tube — in a tire
  21. charge — in control
  22. kid — to tease
  23. march — the month
  24. game — a kind of play

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