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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: ball · chair · tear · bay · tube · kid · kick · stick

  1. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  2. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  3. My mare is ________________ in color.
  4. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  5. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  6. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  7. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  8. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  9. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  10. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  11. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  12. I'll be taking the ________________.
  13. The King held a masked ________________.
  14. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  15. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  16. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  17. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  18. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  19. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  20. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  21. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  22. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  23. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  24. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — a container
  2. kid — child
  3. bay — a horse colour
  4. ball — a great time
  5. bay — a part of the sea
  6. ball — a round shape
  7. bay — to keep at bay
  8. chair — a leader
  9. kick — a thrill
  10. kick — with a leg
  11. kick — in football
  12. tube — the underground
  13. ball — a dance
  14. tear — from crying
  15. stick — a piece of wood
  16. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  17. kid — to tease
  18. tear — to rip
  19. stick — to attach or keep to
  20. tube — in a tire
  21. tear — from crying
  22. chair — a professorship
  23. chair — to sit on
  24. stick — a piece of wood

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