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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: swing · wind · kid · lash · pound · bowl

  1. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  2. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  3. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  4. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  5. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  6. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  7. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  8. David sat on the ________________.
  9. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  10. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  11. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  12. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  13. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  14. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  15. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  16. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  17. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  18. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a dish
  2. kid — child
  3. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  4. bowl — to roll
  5. kid — to tease
  6. wind — to turn a key
  7. lash — a whip stroke
  8. swing — to play on
  9. swing — music
  10. wind — moving air
  11. pound — for dogs
  12. pound — a weight
  13. wind — moving air
  14. bowl — a football final
  15. pound — to hit hard
  16. swing — in golf
  17. lash — an eyelash
  18. lash — to lash out

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