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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 120 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: prune · band · wave · lean · current · cold · charge · plane

  1. The water is too ________________.
  2. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  3. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  4. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  5. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  6. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  7. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  8. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  9. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  10. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  11. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  12. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  13. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  14. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  15. The tickets are free of ________________.
  16. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  17. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  18. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  19. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  20. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  21. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  22. The ________________ took off on time.
  23. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  24. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. wave — of the sea
  3. charge — electricity
  4. wave — with your hand
  5. band — a music group
  6. lean — to bend
  7. plane — a tool
  8. lean — thin
  9. wave — a sudden rise
  10. cold — an illness
  11. band — a ring
  12. band — a rubber band
  13. prune — to trim
  14. current — happening now
  15. charge — a price
  16. charge — in control
  17. lean — to rest against
  18. prune — the fruit
  19. plane — in geometry
  20. prune — to trim
  21. cold — the Cold War
  22. plane — an aircraft
  23. current — of water
  24. current — electric

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