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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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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: capital · spell · saw · lash · kid · club · pound · wind

  1. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  2. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  3. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  4. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  5. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  6. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  7. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  8. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  9. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  10. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  11. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  12. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  13. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  14. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  15. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  16. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  17. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  18. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  19. How do you ________________ your surname?
  20. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  21. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  22. He works in a ________________ mill.
  23. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  24. She's very handy with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for golf
  2. lash — a whip stroke
  3. pound — to hit hard
  4. spell — magic
  5. wind — to turn a key
  6. lash — to lash out
  7. capital — a big letter
  8. pound — a weight
  9. capital — money
  10. spell — a short time
  11. lash — an eyelash
  12. wind — moving air
  13. pound — for dogs
  14. saw — past of 'see'
  15. wind — moving air
  16. kid — child
  17. kid — to tease
  18. capital — a city
  19. spell — letters
  20. club — for dancing
  21. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  22. saw — the tool
  23. club — a group
  24. saw — the tool

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