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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: game · scale · current · rush · rash · fork · wake · wound

  1. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  2. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  3. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  4. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  5. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  6. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  7. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  8. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  9. That was a fun ________________.
  10. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  11. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  12. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  13. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  14. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  15. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  16. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  17. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  18. Don't do anything ________________.
  19. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  20. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  21. That must've been a ________________.
  22. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  23. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  24. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — to eat with
  2. current — electric
  3. wake — a trail
  4. scale — in music
  5. rush — to hurry
  6. wound — an injury
  7. fork — a garden tool
  8. game — wild animals
  9. game — a match
  10. wound — an injury
  11. current — of water
  12. current — happening now
  13. wound — past of 'wind'
  14. wake — to stop sleeping
  15. scale — size or range
  16. fork — in a road
  17. wake — before a funeral
  18. rash — hasty
  19. rash — on the skin
  20. rash — a series
  21. rush — a thrill
  22. rush — hurry
  23. scale — for weighing
  24. game — a kind of play

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