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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 120 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: capital · kid · cabinet · season · current · track · fan · foot

  1. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  2. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  3. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  4. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  5. What do you think of the new ________________?
  6. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  7. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  8. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  9. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  10. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  11. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  12. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  13. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  14. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  15. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  16. Did you ________________ the meat?
  17. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  18. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  19. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  20. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  21. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  22. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  23. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  24. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. track — to keep track
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. season — of the year
  5. cabinet — ministers
  6. track — a song
  7. kid — child
  8. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  9. current — of water
  10. cabinet — a cupboard
  11. kid — to tease
  12. track — a path
  13. season — in sport
  14. capital — money
  15. foot — the bottom
  16. season — to add flavour
  17. current — happening now
  18. foot — part of the body
  19. fan — to cool the air
  20. cabinet — ministers
  21. capital — a big letter
  22. foot — a measure
  23. capital — a city
  24. current — electric

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