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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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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: prune · rest · bank · wound · mark · bowl · cell · row

  1. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  2. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  3. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  4. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  5. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  6. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  7. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  8. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  9. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  10. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  11. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  12. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  13. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  14. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  15. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  16. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  17. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  18. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  19. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  20. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  21. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  22. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  23. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  24. He was locked up in a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. bank — for money
  3. prune — to trim
  4. rest — what's left
  5. bank — of a river
  6. row — to paddle
  7. bowl — a dish
  8. wound — past of 'wind'
  9. cell — in biology
  10. rest — a break
  11. mark — to pay attention
  12. mark — a grade
  13. cell — a phone
  14. wound — an injury
  15. row — a line
  16. bowl — to roll
  17. prune — the fruit
  18. rest — what's left
  19. bank — for money
  20. row — a quarrel
  21. bowl — a football final
  22. mark — a trace
  23. wound — an injury
  24. cell — in a prison

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