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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 120 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: saw · cell · hand · club · current · prune · tube · season

  1. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  2. He was locked up in a ________________.
  3. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  4. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  5. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  6. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  7. I'll be taking the ________________.
  8. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  9. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  10. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  11. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  12. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  13. Did you ________________ the meat?
  14. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  15. She's very handy with a ________________.
  16. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  17. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  18. He works in a ________________ mill.
  19. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  20. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  21. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  22. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  23. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  24. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.

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

Answer key

  1. current — of water
  2. cell — in a prison
  3. prune — to trim
  4. prune — to trim
  5. club — for golf
  6. club — for dancing
  7. tube — the underground
  8. current — electric
  9. hand — part of the body
  10. tube — in a tire
  11. current — happening now
  12. club — a group
  13. season — to add flavour
  14. hand — in cards
  15. saw — the tool
  16. season — of the year
  17. saw — past of 'see'
  18. saw — the tool
  19. cell — a phone
  20. hand — help
  21. prune — the fruit
  22. season — in sport
  23. cell — in biology
  24. tube — a container

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