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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: bank · bass · row · rule · ground · kid · wind · wound

  1. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  2. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  3. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  4. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  5. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  6. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  7. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  8. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  9. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  10. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  11. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  12. There's no middle ________________.
  13. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  14. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  15. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  16. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  17. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  18. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  19. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  20. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  21. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  22. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  23. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  24. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  2. rule — to rule out
  3. wound — an injury
  4. row — a line
  5. row — a quarrel
  6. kid — child
  7. rule — a law
  8. wind — moving air
  9. bass — the instrument
  10. bass — the fish
  11. ground — the earth
  12. ground — a position
  13. bank — for money
  14. bass — low music
  15. row — to paddle
  16. wound — past of 'wind'
  17. rule — government
  18. ground — crushed
  19. wind — to turn a key
  20. bank — for money
  21. bank — of a river
  22. kid — to tease
  23. wound — an injury
  24. wind — moving air

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