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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 116 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: bowl · can · kid · fall · tear · kick · bass · bulb

  1. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  2. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  3. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  4. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  5. The light ________________ burned out.
  6. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  7. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  8. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  9. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  10. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  11. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  12. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  13. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  14. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  15. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  16. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  17. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  18. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  19. I've got to change the light ________________.
  20. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  21. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  22. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  23. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  24. Recycle the empty soda ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — to tease
  2. bowl — to roll
  3. tear — from crying
  4. can — a tin
  5. bulb — for light
  6. tear — from crying
  7. bowl — a dish
  8. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  9. bass — low music
  10. bulb — of a plant
  11. tear — to rip
  12. kick — in football
  13. kick — a thrill
  14. bowl — a football final
  15. fall — the season
  16. can — to be able to
  17. fall — to drop
  18. kick — with a leg
  19. bulb — for light
  20. kid — child
  21. fall — to drop
  22. bass — the instrument
  23. bass — the fish
  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