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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: current · arm · wave · bowl · capital · bark · field · prune

  1. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  2. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  3. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  4. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  5. My father caught me by the ________________.
  6. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  7. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  8. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  9. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  10. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  11. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  12. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  13. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  14. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  15. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  16. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  17. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  18. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  19. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  20. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  21. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  22. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  23. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  24. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. bark — to shout
  3. arm — part of the body
  4. bowl — a football final
  5. arm — part of the body
  6. bark — of a tree
  7. bowl — to roll
  8. bowl — a dish
  9. bark — a dog's sound
  10. current — electric
  11. arm — a part of something
  12. prune — the fruit
  13. field — for sport
  14. wave — of the sea
  15. current — happening now
  16. prune — to trim
  17. current — of water
  18. field — farmland
  19. field — a subject
  20. capital — a big letter
  21. capital — a city
  22. wave — a sudden rise
  23. wave — with your hand
  24. capital — money

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