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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
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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: current · wave · bark · ground · hand · wind · kick · saw

  1. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  2. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  3. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  4. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  5. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  6. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  7. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  8. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  9. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  10. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  11. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  12. She's very handy with a ________________.
  13. There's no middle ________________.
  14. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  15. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  16. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  17. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  18. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  19. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  20. He works in a ________________ mill.
  21. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  22. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  23. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  24. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — of a tree
  2. current — electric
  3. kick — a thrill
  4. kick — with a leg
  5. hand — in cards
  6. saw — past of 'see'
  7. ground — the earth
  8. kick — in football
  9. ground — crushed
  10. wind — moving air
  11. wind — to turn a key
  12. saw — the tool
  13. ground — a position
  14. wave — of the sea
  15. bark — a dog's sound
  16. hand — help
  17. current — happening now
  18. wave — a sudden rise
  19. hand — part of the body
  20. saw — the tool
  21. wind — moving air
  22. current — of water
  23. bark — to shout
  24. wave — with your hand

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