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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 120 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: pop · club · current · fan · swing · wind · spring · bound

  1. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  2. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  3. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  4. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  5. David sat on the ________________.
  6. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  7. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  8. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  9. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  10. That was ________________ to happen.
  11. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  12. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  13. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  14. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  15. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  16. We're almost out of ________________.
  17. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  18. You don't need to ________________ round.
  19. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  20. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  21. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  22. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  23. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  24. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.

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

Answer key

  1. bound — tied together
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. pop — music
  4. club — for golf
  5. swing — to play on
  6. current — electric
  7. bound — obliged
  8. spring — a coil
  9. swing — in golf
  10. bound — certain
  11. current — happening now
  12. wind — moving air
  13. club — for dancing
  14. current — of water
  15. wind — moving air
  16. pop — soda
  17. spring — the season
  18. pop — to visit
  19. fan — to cool the air
  20. spring — of water
  21. club — a group
  22. swing — music
  23. wind — to turn a key
  24. fan — a supporter

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