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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 120 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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Word bank
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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: rock · straw · prune · mate · foot · spell · capital · wave

  1. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  2. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  3. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  4. Have you found your soul ________________?
  5. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  6. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  7. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  8. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  9. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  10. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  11. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  12. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  13. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  14. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  15. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  16. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  17. How do you ________________ your surname?
  18. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  19. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  20. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  21. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  22. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  23. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  24. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.

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

Answer key

  1. foot — the bottom
  2. wave — of the sea
  3. spell — a short time
  4. mate — a partner
  5. foot — a measure
  6. foot — part of the body
  7. capital — money
  8. rock — music
  9. straw — dry grass
  10. wave — a sudden rise
  11. prune — to trim
  12. mate — a friend
  13. capital — a city
  14. rock — to move gently
  15. rock — a stone
  16. prune — the fruit
  17. spell — letters
  18. straw — a straw man
  19. prune — to trim
  20. capital — a big letter
  21. spell — magic
  22. wave — with your hand
  23. straw — to clutch at straws
  24. mate — to breed

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