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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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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 · wave · cell · game · race · wind · sharp · ruler

  1. It's one o'clock ________________.
  2. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  3. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  4. He was locked up in a ________________.
  5. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  6. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  7. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  8. That was a fun ________________.
  9. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  10. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  11. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  12. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  13. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  14. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  15. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  16. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  17. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  18. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  19. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  20. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  21. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  22. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  23. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  24. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — exactly
  2. game — wild animals
  3. ruler — a monarch
  4. cell — in a prison
  5. cell — a phone
  6. cell — in biology
  7. wave — a sudden rise
  8. game — a match
  9. ruler — for measuring
  10. wind — moving air
  11. race — the arms race
  12. race — a contest
  13. wind — to turn a key
  14. wave — of the sea
  15. prune — to trim
  16. prune — the fruit
  17. sharp — clever
  18. game — a kind of play
  19. sharp — with an edge
  20. wave — with your hand
  21. race — humankind
  22. ruler — for measuring
  23. prune — to trim
  24. wind — moving air

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