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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. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  2. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  3. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  4. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  5. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  6. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  7. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  8. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  9. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  10. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  11. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  12. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  13. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  14. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  15. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  16. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  17. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  18. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  19. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  20. When are we going to ________________?
  21. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  22. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  23. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  24. Beijing is the ________________ of China.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a lid
  2. land — a country
  3. capital — a big letter
  4. prune — to trim
  5. staff — a stick
  6. staff — employees
  7. pit — a fruit stone
  8. prune — to trim
  9. cap — a hat
  10. pit — a hole
  11. staff — employees
  12. drill — the tool
  13. land — ground
  14. drill — a practice
  15. drill — army training
  16. bank — for money
  17. capital — money
  18. prune — the fruit
  19. bank — for money
  20. land — to come down
  21. cap — of ice
  22. bank — of a river
  23. pit — in a race
  24. capital — a city

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