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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: pound · cold · net · branch · kid · wake · charge · suit

  1. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  2. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  3. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  4. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  5. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  6. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  7. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  8. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  9. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  10. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  11. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  12. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  13. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  14. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  15. The water is too ________________.
  16. When will it ________________ you to start?
  17. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  18. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  19. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  20. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  21. The tickets are free of ________________.
  22. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  23. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  24. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — to tease
  2. net — in sport
  3. pound — a weight
  4. charge — in control
  5. wake — a trail
  6. wake — to stop sleeping
  7. branch — of a bank
  8. kid — child
  9. wake — before a funeral
  10. net — for catching
  11. cold — an illness
  12. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  13. charge — electricity
  14. branch — of a tree
  15. cold — not warm
  16. suit — to fit
  17. suit — in cards
  18. branch — a division
  19. suit — clothes
  20. net — after costs
  21. charge — a price
  22. pound — to hit hard
  23. pound — for dogs
  24. cold — the Cold War

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