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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: hand · wind · net · pop · fork · pound · stem · bowl

  1. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  2. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  3. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  4. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  5. We're almost out of ________________.
  6. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  7. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  8. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  9. You don't need to ________________ round.
  10. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  11. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  12. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  13. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  14. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  15. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  16. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  17. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  18. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  19. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  20. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  21. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  22. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  23. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  24. He took the fish out of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — to hit hard
  2. bowl — a dish
  3. fork — in a road
  4. stem — to come from
  5. pop — soda
  6. net — after costs
  7. stem — a stem cell
  8. hand — in cards
  9. pop — to visit
  10. bowl — a football final
  11. pop — music
  12. fork — a garden tool
  13. stem — of a plant
  14. fork — to eat with
  15. hand — help
  16. hand — part of the body
  17. pound — a weight
  18. wind — moving air
  19. wind — moving air
  20. bowl — to roll
  21. net — in sport
  22. wind — to turn a key
  23. pound — for dogs
  24. net — for catching

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