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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: mate · kid · stock · current · wind · content · pound · fine

  1. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  2. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  3. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  4. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  5. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  6. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  7. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  8. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  9. Have you found your soul ________________?
  10. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  11. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  12. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  13. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  14. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  15. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  16. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  17. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  18. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  19. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  20. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  21. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  22. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  23. The ________________ market has crashed.
  24. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — to turn a key
  2. stock — a soup base
  3. mate — to breed
  4. wind — moving air
  5. pound — for dogs
  6. content — videos and posts
  7. fine — high quality
  8. current — of water
  9. mate — a partner
  10. mate — a friend
  11. fine — a penalty
  12. fine — all right
  13. kid — to tease
  14. kid — child
  15. pound — to hit hard
  16. content — happy
  17. wind — moving air
  18. pound — a weight
  19. current — happening now
  20. stock — goods
  21. content — the amount
  22. current — electric
  23. stock — shares
  24. kid — young goat (kid gloves)

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