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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: current · bear · scale · land · wind · track · roll · spell

  1. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  2. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  3. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  4. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  5. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  6. How do you ________________ your surname?
  7. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  8. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  9. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  10. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  11. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  12. When are we going to ________________?
  13. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  14. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  15. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  16. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  17. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  18. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  19. We're on a ________________ here.
  20. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  21. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  22. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  23. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  24. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — a short time
  2. spell — magic
  3. current — electric
  4. track — a path
  5. roll — a cake
  6. spell — letters
  7. current — of water
  8. bear — the animal
  9. scale — size or range
  10. land — a country
  11. bear — to put up with
  12. land — to come down
  13. land — ground
  14. bear — the animal
  15. roll — a list
  16. scale — for weighing
  17. wind — moving air
  18. track — a song
  19. roll — on a roll
  20. wind — moving air
  21. scale — in music
  22. current — happening now
  23. track — to keep track
  24. wind — to turn a key

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