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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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 · can · march · kid · ball · net · pound

  1. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  2. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  3. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  4. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  5. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  6. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  7. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  8. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  9. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  10. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  11. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  12. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  13. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  14. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  15. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  16. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  17. The King held a masked ________________.
  18. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  19. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  20. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  21. That was a fun ________________.
  22. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  23. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  24. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. can — to be able to
  2. pound — to hit hard
  3. net — in sport
  4. wind — moving air
  5. kid — child
  6. ball — a round shape
  7. pound — a weight
  8. can — a tin
  9. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  10. net — for catching
  11. kid — to tease
  12. march — music
  13. game — a kind of play
  14. net — after costs
  15. march — the month
  16. pound — for dogs
  17. ball — a dance
  18. wind — to turn a key
  19. wind — moving air
  20. game — wild animals
  21. game — a match
  22. ball — a great time
  23. can — a tin
  24. march — the month

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