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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: field · prune · board · wave · fork · rush · root · sharp

  1. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  2. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  3. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  4. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  5. It's one o'clock ________________.
  6. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  7. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  8. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  9. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  10. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  11. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  12. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  13. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  14. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  15. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  16. That must've been a ________________.
  17. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  18. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  19. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  20. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  21. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  22. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  23. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  24. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — to hurry
  2. board — to get on
  3. rush — hurry
  4. fork — to eat with
  5. sharp — exactly
  6. board — a flat piece
  7. fork — a garden tool
  8. wave — a sudden rise
  9. prune — to trim
  10. wave — of the sea
  11. field — farmland
  12. prune — to trim
  13. sharp — clever
  14. fork — in a road
  15. field — for sport
  16. rush — a thrill
  17. root — the cause
  18. root — of a plant
  19. field — a subject
  20. prune — the fruit
  21. board — a committee
  22. sharp — with an edge
  23. wave — with your hand
  24. root — of a word

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