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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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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: kid · club · wind · pound · fork · mate · roll · current

  1. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  2. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  3. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  4. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  5. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  6. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  7. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  8. Have you found your soul ________________?
  9. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  10. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  11. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  12. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  13. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  14. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  15. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  16. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  17. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  18. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  19. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  20. We're on a ________________ here.
  21. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  22. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  23. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  24. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — to hit hard
  2. club — a group
  3. kid — to tease
  4. wind — moving air
  5. current — happening now
  6. fork — in a road
  7. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  8. mate — a partner
  9. roll — a cake
  10. mate — to breed
  11. fork — a garden tool
  12. club — for dancing
  13. pound — a weight
  14. current — electric
  15. pound — for dogs
  16. mate — a friend
  17. club — for golf
  18. current — of water
  19. wind — moving air
  20. roll — on a roll
  21. kid — child
  22. fork — to eat with
  23. wind — to turn a key
  24. roll — a list

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