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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 120 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: scale · tear · current · rash · spring · lean · court · pound

  1. The ball is in your ________________.
  2. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  3. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  4. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  5. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  6. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  7. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  8. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  9. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  10. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  11. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  12. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  13. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  14. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  15. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  16. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  17. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  18. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  19. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  20. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  21. Don't do anything ________________.
  22. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  23. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  24. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.

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

Answer key

  1. court — for sport
  2. lean — thin
  3. current — of water
  4. tear — from crying
  5. tear — to rip
  6. court — of law
  7. lean — to rest against
  8. pound — a weight
  9. pound — to hit hard
  10. current — happening now
  11. rash — on the skin
  12. lean — to bend
  13. spring — of water
  14. pound — for dogs
  15. spring — the season
  16. scale — size or range
  17. scale — in music
  18. scale — for weighing
  19. tear — from crying
  20. current — electric
  21. rash — hasty
  22. spring — a coil
  23. court — of a king
  24. rash — a series

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