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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 116 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: can · race · season · prune · chair · current

  1. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  2. Did you ________________ the meat?
  3. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  4. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  5. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  6. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  7. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  8. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  9. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  10. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  11. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  12. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  13. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  14. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  15. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  16. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  17. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  18. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.

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

Answer key

  1. season — of the year
  2. season — to add flavour
  3. race — a contest
  4. can — a tin
  5. can — a tin
  6. prune — the fruit
  7. season — in sport
  8. current — electric
  9. chair — to sit on
  10. prune — to trim
  11. race — the arms race
  12. chair — a leader
  13. race — humankind
  14. prune — to trim
  15. chair — a professorship
  16. can — to be able to
  17. current — of water
  18. current — happening now

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