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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. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  2. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  3. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  4. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  5. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  6. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  7. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  8. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  9. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  10. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  11. Don't do anything ________________.
  12. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  13. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  14. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  15. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  16. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  17. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  18. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  19. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  20. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  21. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  22. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  23. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  24. She's sitting on a gold ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a city
  2. straw — a straw man
  3. root — of a word
  4. squash — the sport
  5. prune — to trim
  6. capital — money
  7. prune — to trim
  8. rash — a series
  9. lash — a whip stroke
  10. root — the cause
  11. rash — hasty
  12. capital — a big letter
  13. root — of a plant
  14. lash — to lash out
  15. mine — an explosive
  16. prune — the fruit
  17. lash — an eyelash
  18. rash — on the skin
  19. straw — dry grass
  20. squash — the vegetable
  21. squash — to crush
  22. straw — to clutch at straws
  23. mine — belonging to me
  24. mine — for digging

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