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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: pound · spell · swing · fork · vault · kid

  1. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  2. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  3. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  4. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  5. David sat on the ________________.
  6. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  7. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  8. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  9. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  10. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  11. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  12. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  13. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  14. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  15. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  16. How do you ________________ your surname?
  17. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  18. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — a short time
  2. vault — in gymnastics
  3. fork — a garden tool
  4. pound — to hit hard
  5. swing — to play on
  6. kid — child
  7. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  8. vault — an arched ceiling
  9. pound — for dogs
  10. kid — to tease
  11. swing — music
  12. fork — in a road
  13. pound — a weight
  14. swing — in golf
  15. vault — a safe
  16. spell — letters
  17. fork — to eat with
  18. spell — magic

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