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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: kid · kick · pit · ball · rush · tube · snap · mine

  1. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  2. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  3. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  4. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  5. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  6. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  7. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  8. I'll be taking the ________________.
  9. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  10. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  11. The King held a masked ________________.
  12. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  13. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  14. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  15. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  16. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  17. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  18. That must've been a ________________.
  19. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  20. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  21. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  22. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  23. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  24. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a round shape
  2. mine — for digging
  3. pit — a hole
  4. kid — to tease
  5. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  6. rush — hurry
  7. kick — in football
  8. tube — the underground
  9. kick — with a leg
  10. rush — to hurry
  11. ball — a dance
  12. snap — to speak sharply
  13. mine — an explosive
  14. tube — in a tire
  15. pit — in a race
  16. mine — belonging to me
  17. ball — a great time
  18. rush — a thrill
  19. snap — to snap out of it
  20. tube — a container
  21. kick — a thrill
  22. snap — to click
  23. pit — a fruit stone
  24. kid — child

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