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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. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  2. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  3. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  4. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  5. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  6. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  7. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  8. The ball is in your ________________.
  9. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  10. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  11. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  12. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  13. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  14. It's one o'clock ________________.
  15. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  16. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  17. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  18. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  19. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  20. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  21. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  22. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  23. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  24. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.

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. sharp — clever
  4. safe — a strongbox
  5. scale — for weighing
  6. capital — money
  7. prune — the fruit
  8. court — for sport
  9. lash — an eyelash
  10. court — of law
  11. capital — a big letter
  12. chip — to eat
  13. lash — to lash out
  14. sharp — exactly
  15. scale — size or range
  16. safe — out of danger
  17. chip — for betting
  18. chip — in a computer
  19. lash — a whip stroke
  20. sharp — with an edge
  21. court — of a king
  22. safe — out of danger
  23. prune — to trim
  24. scale — in music

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