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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: kid · fork · calf · track · root · pound · wax · game

  1. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  2. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  3. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  4. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  5. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  6. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  7. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  8. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  9. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  10. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  11. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  12. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  13. That was a fun ________________.
  14. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  15. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  16. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  17. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  18. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  19. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  20. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  21. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  22. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  23. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  24. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — for sculpting
  2. track — to keep track
  3. fork — in a road
  4. kid — to tease
  5. root — the cause
  6. fork — a garden tool
  7. game — a kind of play
  8. track — a path
  9. kid — child
  10. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  11. calf — a young animal
  12. pound — for dogs
  13. game — a match
  14. wax — to grow
  15. calf — a young animal
  16. root — of a plant
  17. track — a song
  18. fork — to eat with
  19. game — wild animals
  20. pound — a weight
  21. pound — to hit hard
  22. wax — in the ear
  23. calf — of the leg
  24. root — of a word

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