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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: lean · scale · bound · game · squash · wound · kid · stock

  1. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  2. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  3. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  4. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  5. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  6. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  7. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  8. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  9. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  10. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  11. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  12. That was ________________ to happen.
  13. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  14. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  15. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  16. The ________________ market has crashed.
  17. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  18. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  19. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  20. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  21. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  22. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  23. That was a fun ________________.
  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. kid — child
  2. game — wild animals
  3. game — a kind of play
  4. scale — in music
  5. squash — the sport
  6. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  7. lean — to bend
  8. bound — obliged
  9. wound — past of 'wind'
  10. squash — the vegetable
  11. wound — an injury
  12. bound — certain
  13. wound — an injury
  14. scale — size or range
  15. kid — to tease
  16. stock — shares
  17. scale — for weighing
  18. bound — tied together
  19. lean — thin
  20. squash — to crush
  21. stock — goods
  22. lean — to rest against
  23. game — a match
  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