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

Word bank: staff · pound · prune · bear · trunk · rash · fork · capital

  1. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  2. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  3. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  4. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  5. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  6. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  7. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  8. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  9. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  10. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  11. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  12. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  13. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  14. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  15. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  16. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  17. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  18. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  19. Don't do anything ________________.
  20. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  21. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  22. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  23. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  24. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a car
  2. capital — a city
  3. staff — employees
  4. prune — to trim
  5. prune — the fruit
  6. bear — the animal
  7. rash — on the skin
  8. prune — to trim
  9. bear — to put up with
  10. bear — the animal
  11. trunk — of an elephant
  12. rash — a series
  13. fork — in a road
  14. capital — money
  15. pound — a weight
  16. staff — a stick
  17. capital — a big letter
  18. pound — to hit hard
  19. rash — hasty
  20. trunk — of a tree
  21. pound — for dogs
  22. staff — employees
  23. fork — to eat with
  24. fork — a garden tool

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