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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: wind · court · swing · fork · ruler · current

  1. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  2. The ball is in your ________________.
  3. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  4. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  5. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  6. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  7. David sat on the ________________.
  8. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  9. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  10. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  11. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  12. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  13. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  14. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  15. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  16. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  17. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  18. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of law
  2. court — for sport
  3. ruler — for measuring
  4. wind — to turn a key
  5. ruler — a monarch
  6. wind — moving air
  7. swing — to play on
  8. current — of water
  9. wind — moving air
  10. swing — in golf
  11. fork — to eat with
  12. ruler — for measuring
  13. fork — in a road
  14. court — of a king
  15. current — electric
  16. current — happening now
  17. swing — music
  18. fork — a garden tool

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