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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.

Words on the sheet
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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 · coach · spring · nail · net · can · prune · season

  1. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  2. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  3. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  4. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  5. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  6. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  7. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  8. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  9. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  10. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  11. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  12. The ________________ went through the wall.
  13. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  14. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  15. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  16. Have you met the new head ________________?
  17. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  18. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  19. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  20. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  21. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  22. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  23. Did you ________________ the meat?
  24. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — on a finger
  2. prune — to trim
  3. season — of the year
  4. nail — for a hammer
  5. can — a tin
  6. prune — to trim
  7. spring — of water
  8. can — to be able to
  9. capital — a city
  10. capital — money
  11. coach — pulled by horses
  12. nail — for a hammer
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. net — in sport
  15. capital — a big letter
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. net — for catching
  18. spring — a coil
  19. can — a tin
  20. spring — the season
  21. net — after costs
  22. prune — the fruit
  23. season — to add flavour
  24. season — in sport

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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