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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: game · wind · wake · current · stock · snap · bowl · craft

  1. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  2. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  3. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  4. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  5. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  6. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  7. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  8. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  9. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  10. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  11. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  12. That was a fun ________________.
  13. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  14. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  15. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  16. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  17. The ________________ market has crashed.
  18. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  19. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  20. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  21. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  22. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  23. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  24. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. current — happening now
  3. snap — to speak sharply
  4. snap — to snap out of it
  5. snap — to click
  6. current — of water
  7. craft — a skill
  8. craft — boats
  9. craft — a handicraft
  10. stock — goods
  11. stock — a soup base
  12. game — a match
  13. game — wild animals
  14. wake — to stop sleeping
  15. wake — before a funeral
  16. wind — moving air
  17. stock — shares
  18. current — electric
  19. wake — a trail
  20. game — a kind of play
  21. wind — to turn a key
  22. bowl — a dish
  23. bowl — to roll
  24. bowl — a football final

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