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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 116 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: track · board · shower · craft · current · land · bat · spell

  1. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  2. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  3. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  4. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  5. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  6. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  7. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  8. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  9. How do you ________________ your surname?
  10. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  11. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  12. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  13. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  14. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  15. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  16. When are we going to ________________?
  17. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  18. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  19. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  20. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  21. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  22. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  23. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  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. shower — to wash
  2. current — happening now
  3. bat — for baseball
  4. bat — the animal
  5. current — of water
  6. track — a song
  7. board — to get on
  8. craft — boats
  9. spell — letters
  10. spell — a short time
  11. shower — a meteor shower
  12. board — a flat piece
  13. bat — in an idiom
  14. craft — a skill
  15. land — a country
  16. land — to come down
  17. current — electric
  18. spell — magic
  19. track — to keep track
  20. board — a committee
  21. land — ground
  22. track — a path
  23. craft — a handicraft
  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