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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 · season · hand · spring · wake · object · clip · bass

  1. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  2. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  3. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  4. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  5. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  6. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  7. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  8. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  9. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  10. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  11. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  12. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  13. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  14. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  15. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  16. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  17. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  18. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  19. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  20. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  21. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  22. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  23. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  24. Did you ________________ the meat?

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

Answer key

  1. object — a thing
  2. bass — the fish
  3. clip — for paper
  4. prune — the fruit
  5. wake — to stop sleeping
  6. hand — part of the body
  7. hand — in cards
  8. clip — a video
  9. season — of the year
  10. spring — a coil
  11. wake — a trail
  12. prune — to trim
  13. clip — to cut
  14. spring — the season
  15. object — an aim
  16. prune — to trim
  17. spring — of water
  18. object — to protest
  19. hand — help
  20. bass — the instrument
  21. bass — low music
  22. wake — before a funeral
  23. season — in sport
  24. season — to add flavour

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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