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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: track · content · kid · deal · foot · fan · court · root

  1. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  2. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  3. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  4. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  5. The ball is in your ________________.
  6. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  7. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  8. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  9. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  10. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  11. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  12. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  13. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  14. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  15. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  16. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  17. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  18. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  19. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  20. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  21. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  22. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  23. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  24. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — to tease
  2. foot — part of the body
  3. kid — child
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. court — for sport
  6. content — the amount
  7. track — to keep track
  8. fan — a supporter
  9. content — happy
  10. track — a song
  11. root — of a plant
  12. fan — to cool the air
  13. foot — the bottom
  14. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  15. root — the cause
  16. foot — a measure
  17. court — of law
  18. deal — an agreement
  19. track — a path
  20. content — videos and posts
  21. deal — a big deal
  22. court — of a king
  23. root — of a word
  24. deal — to handle

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