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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 124 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: capital · fall · shower · key · root · cell · prune · can

  1. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  2. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  3. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  4. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  5. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  6. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  7. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  8. This piece is in a major ________________.
  9. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  10. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  11. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  12. He was locked up in a ________________.
  13. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  14. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  15. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  16. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  17. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  18. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  19. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  20. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  21. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  22. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  23. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  24. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. can — a tin
  3. prune — the fruit
  4. shower — rain
  5. key — the most important part
  6. capital — a big letter
  7. capital — a city
  8. key — in music
  9. capital — money
  10. cell — in biology
  11. cell — a phone
  12. cell — in a prison
  13. can — a tin
  14. root — the cause
  15. fall — the season
  16. root — of a plant
  17. shower — to wash
  18. prune — to trim
  19. fall — to drop
  20. shower — a meteor shower
  21. key — for a lock
  22. root — of a word
  23. can — to be able to
  24. fall — to drop

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