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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: current · mark · wind · ball · saw · wound · stock · court

  1. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  2. The King held a masked ________________.
  3. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  4. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  5. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  6. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  7. The ________________ market has crashed.
  8. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  9. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  10. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  11. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  12. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  13. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  14. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  15. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  16. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  17. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  18. She's very handy with a ________________.
  19. He works in a ________________ mill.
  20. The ball is in your ________________.
  21. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  22. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  23. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  24. What's the difference between broth and ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. wound — past of 'wind'
  2. ball — a dance
  3. mark — a grade
  4. ball — a round shape
  5. wind — moving air
  6. court — of a king
  7. stock — shares
  8. wind — to turn a key
  9. stock — goods
  10. wound — an injury
  11. current — happening now
  12. saw — past of 'see'
  13. wound — an injury
  14. court — of law
  15. mark — to pay attention
  16. current — electric
  17. wind — moving air
  18. saw — the tool
  19. saw — the tool
  20. court — for sport
  21. mark — a trace
  22. current — of water
  23. ball — a great time
  24. stock — a soup base

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