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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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  2. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  3. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  4. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  5. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  6. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  7. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  8. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  9. We're almost out of ________________.
  10. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  11. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  12. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  13. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  14. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  15. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  16. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  17. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  18. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  19. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  20. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  21. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  22. You don't need to ________________ round.
  23. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  24. We took cover from the thunder ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — help
  2. shower — a meteor shower
  3. calf — a young animal
  4. root — of a plant
  5. track — a path
  6. root — of a word
  7. hand — part of the body
  8. bowl — to roll
  9. pop — soda
  10. current — happening now
  11. calf — a young animal
  12. bowl — a football final
  13. hand — in cards
  14. shower — to wash
  15. root — the cause
  16. track — a song
  17. calf — of the leg
  18. current — electric
  19. track — to keep track
  20. pop — music
  21. bowl — a dish
  22. pop — to visit
  23. current — of water
  24. shower — rain

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