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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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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: calf · roll · mine · track · hand · fan · root · current

  1. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  2. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  3. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  4. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  5. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  6. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  7. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  8. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  9. We're on a ________________ here.
  10. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  11. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  12. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  13. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  14. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  15. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  16. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  17. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  18. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  19. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  20. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  21. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  22. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  23. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  24. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — for digging
  2. root — of a plant
  3. roll — a list
  4. calf — a young animal
  5. hand — in cards
  6. current — electric
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. fan — a supporter
  9. roll — on a roll
  10. track — to keep track
  11. root — of a word
  12. mine — an explosive
  13. calf — of the leg
  14. current — of water
  15. current — happening now
  16. roll — a cake
  17. mine — belonging to me
  18. hand — part of the body
  19. root — the cause
  20. fan — to cool the air
  21. track — a path
  22. hand — help
  23. track — a song
  24. calf — a young animal

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