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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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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 · game · nail · land · season · face · wave · current

  1. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  2. That was a fun ________________.
  3. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  4. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  5. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  6. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  7. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  8. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  9. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  10. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  11. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  12. When are we going to ________________?
  13. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  14. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  15. Did you ________________ the meat?
  16. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  17. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  18. The ________________ went through the wall.
  19. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  20. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  21. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  22. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  23. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  24. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to confront
  2. game — a match
  3. wave — with your hand
  4. current — happening now
  5. game — a kind of play
  6. land — a country
  7. wave — a sudden rise
  8. season — in sport
  9. prune — to trim
  10. wave — of the sea
  11. game — wild animals
  12. land — to come down
  13. nail — on a finger
  14. prune — to trim
  15. season — to add flavour
  16. season — of the year
  17. current — of water
  18. nail — for a hammer
  19. nail — for a hammer
  20. face — part of the head
  21. land — ground
  22. prune — the fruit
  23. face — to point toward
  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