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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: fan · kid · bark · current · foot · degree · root · rule

  1. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  2. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  3. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  4. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  5. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  6. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  7. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  8. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  9. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  10. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  11. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  12. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  13. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  14. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  15. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  16. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  17. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  18. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  19. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  20. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  21. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  22. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  23. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  24. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — government
  2. bark — to shout
  3. current — happening now
  4. degree — temperature
  5. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. degree — an amount
  8. degree — from a university
  9. fan — to cool the air
  10. root — of a plant
  11. root — of a word
  12. rule — to rule out
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. current — of water
  15. bark — of a tree
  16. root — the cause
  17. rule — a law
  18. kid — to tease
  19. foot — part of the body
  20. foot — a measure
  21. foot — the bottom
  22. kid — child
  23. current — electric
  24. bark — a dog's sound

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