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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 · bat · current · bear · present · mark · game · ball

  1. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  2. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  3. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  4. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  5. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  6. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  7. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  8. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  9. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  10. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  11. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  12. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  13. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  14. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  15. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  16. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  17. That was a fun ________________.
  18. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  19. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  20. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  21. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  22. The King held a masked ________________.
  23. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  24. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — a grade
  2. bear — the animal
  3. game — a kind of play
  4. current — electric
  5. bear — the animal
  6. ball — a round shape
  7. bat — the animal
  8. game — wild animals
  9. current — happening now
  10. bat — in an idiom
  11. current — of water
  12. present — the time now
  13. present — a gift
  14. prune — to trim
  15. prune — to trim
  16. mark — to pay attention
  17. game — a match
  18. bear — to put up with
  19. ball — a great time
  20. prune — the fruit
  21. mark — a trace
  22. ball — a dance
  23. bat — for baseball
  24. present — there

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