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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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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 · bark · current · racket · race · pitch · mine · wind

  1. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  2. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  3. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  4. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  5. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  6. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  7. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  8. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  9. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  10. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  11. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  12. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  13. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  14. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  15. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  16. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  17. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  18. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  19. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  20. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  21. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  22. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  23. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  24. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — of a tree
  2. race — a contest
  3. mine — an explosive
  4. bark — a dog's sound
  5. current — happening now
  6. bark — to shout
  7. pitch — completely
  8. current — electric
  9. current — of water
  10. prune — to trim
  11. race — the arms race
  12. racket — a loud noise
  13. prune — to trim
  14. wind — moving air
  15. pitch — a sports field
  16. mine — for digging
  17. mine — belonging to me
  18. pitch — a sales talk
  19. race — humankind
  20. wind — moving air
  21. prune — the fruit
  22. racket — for tennis
  23. wind — to turn a key
  24. racket — for tennis

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