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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: perch · cue · squash · kid · pound · trunk · wind · current

  1. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  2. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  3. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  4. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  5. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  6. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  7. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  8. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  9. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  10. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  11. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  12. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  13. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  14. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  15. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  16. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  17. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  18. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  19. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  20. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  21. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  22. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  23. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  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. cue — a signal
  2. trunk — of a tree
  3. current — electric
  4. trunk — of an elephant
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. current — happening now
  7. wind — moving air
  8. squash — the vegetable
  9. cue — a hint
  10. perch — the fish
  11. kid — to tease
  12. wind — moving air
  13. squash — the sport
  14. current — of water
  15. pound — a weight
  16. pound — to hit hard
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. kid — child
  19. cue — for pool
  20. squash — to crush
  21. pound — for dogs
  22. trunk — of a car
  23. wind — to turn a key
  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