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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 · current · face · game · bound · capital · rash · wind

  1. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  2. That was a fun ________________.
  3. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  4. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  5. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  6. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  7. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  8. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  9. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  10. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  11. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  12. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  13. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  14. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  15. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  16. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  17. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  18. That was ________________ to happen.
  19. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  20. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  21. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  22. Don't do anything ________________.
  23. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  24. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.

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

Answer key

  1. current — of water
  2. game — a match
  3. bound — tied together
  4. rash — a series
  5. prune — the fruit
  6. current — happening now
  7. game — wild animals
  8. wind — to turn a key
  9. wind — moving air
  10. rash — on the skin
  11. capital — money
  12. prune — to trim
  13. face — to confront
  14. capital — a big letter
  15. game — a kind of play
  16. capital — a city
  17. wind — moving air
  18. bound — certain
  19. current — electric
  20. face — part of the head
  21. face — to point toward
  22. rash — hasty
  23. bound — obliged
  24. prune — to trim

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