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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: bowl · scale · wind · prune · bank · face · current · season

  1. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  2. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  3. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  4. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  5. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  6. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  7. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  8. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  9. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  10. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  11. Did you ________________ the meat?
  12. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  13. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  14. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  15. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  16. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  17. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  18. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  19. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  20. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  21. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  22. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  23. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  24. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. season — of the year
  2. bowl — a dish
  3. wind — moving air
  4. wind — moving air
  5. bowl — to roll
  6. current — electric
  7. current — of water
  8. prune — to trim
  9. wind — to turn a key
  10. bank — for money
  11. season — to add flavour
  12. face — part of the head
  13. season — in sport
  14. current — happening now
  15. prune — the fruit
  16. face — to confront
  17. prune — to trim
  18. scale — for weighing
  19. face — to point toward
  20. bank — for money
  21. scale — size or range
  22. scale — in music
  23. bowl — a football final
  24. bank — of a river

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