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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: calf · current · face · mine · fan · root · jam · saw

  1. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  2. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  3. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  4. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  5. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  6. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  7. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  8. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  9. He works in a ________________ mill.
  10. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  11. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  12. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  13. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  14. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  15. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  16. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  17. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  18. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  19. She's very handy with a ________________.
  20. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  21. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  22. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  23. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  24. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to confront
  2. fan — to cool the air
  3. root — of a word
  4. calf — of the leg
  5. saw — past of 'see'
  6. mine — belonging to me
  7. calf — a young animal
  8. mine — an explosive
  9. saw — the tool
  10. root — of a plant
  11. current — of water
  12. calf — a young animal
  13. current — electric
  14. mine — for digging
  15. jam — to spread on bread
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. face — to point toward
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. saw — the tool
  20. root — the cause
  21. face — part of the head
  22. current — happening now
  23. jam — a tight spot
  24. jam — in traffic

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