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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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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. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  2. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  3. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  4. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  5. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  6. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  7. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  8. Did you ________________ the meat?
  9. I can't ________________ this cold.
  10. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  11. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  12. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  13. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  14. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  15. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  16. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  17. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  18. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  19. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  20. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  21. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  22. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  23. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  24. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. capital — a city
  3. stand — for spectators
  4. capital — a big letter
  5. content — the amount
  6. wake — before a funeral
  7. stand — on your feet
  8. season — to add flavour
  9. stand — to bear
  10. prune — the fruit
  11. prune — to trim
  12. mine — for digging
  13. season — in sport
  14. capital — money
  15. content — happy
  16. mine — belonging to me
  17. snap — to snap out of it
  18. mine — an explosive
  19. wake — a trail
  20. wake — to stop sleeping
  21. content — videos and posts
  22. season — of the year
  23. snap — to speak sharply
  24. snap — to click

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