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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: wake · current · prune · row · clip · patient · rule · season

  1. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  2. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  3. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  4. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  5. Did you ________________ the meat?
  6. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  7. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  8. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  9. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  10. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  11. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  12. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  13. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  14. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  15. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  16. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  17. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  18. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  19. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  20. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  21. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  22. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  23. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  24. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. patient — a sick person
  3. clip — for paper
  4. row — to paddle
  5. season — to add flavour
  6. current — electric
  7. rule — government
  8. current — happening now
  9. clip — to cut
  10. season — of the year
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. rule — a law
  13. row — a line
  14. rule — to rule out
  15. row — a quarrel
  16. current — of water
  17. patient — calm and waiting
  18. wake — a trail
  19. prune — the fruit
  20. season — in sport
  21. wake — to stop sleeping
  22. prune — to trim
  23. wake — before a funeral
  24. clip — a video

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