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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: rule · chip · court · root · current · tear

  1. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  2. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  3. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  4. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  5. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  6. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  7. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  8. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  9. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  10. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  11. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  12. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  13. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  14. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  15. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  16. The ball is in your ________________.
  17. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  18. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — government
  2. current — electric
  3. root — of a plant
  4. root — of a word
  5. rule — a law
  6. tear — to rip
  7. current — of water
  8. rule — to rule out
  9. tear — from crying
  10. court — of law
  11. chip — for betting
  12. tear — from crying
  13. chip — to eat
  14. current — happening now
  15. court — of a king
  16. court — for sport
  17. chip — in a computer
  18. root — the cause

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