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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 116 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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  2. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  3. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  4. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  5. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  6. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  7. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  8. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  9. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  10. That must've been a ________________.
  11. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  12. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  13. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  14. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  15. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  16. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  17. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  18. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  19. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  20. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  21. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  22. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  23. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  24. Biology is a ________________ of science.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — the animal
  2. prune — the fruit
  3. bark — a dog's sound
  4. fine — high quality
  5. capital — a city
  6. rush — to hurry
  7. fine — a penalty
  8. bark — to shout
  9. bat — in an idiom
  10. rush — a thrill
  11. fine — all right
  12. prune — to trim
  13. branch — of a bank
  14. capital — a big letter
  15. bark — of a tree
  16. cap — a hat
  17. rush — hurry
  18. prune — to trim
  19. cap — of ice
  20. branch — of a tree
  21. bat — for baseball
  22. cap — a lid
  23. capital — money
  24. branch — a division

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