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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: prune · staff · lash · kick · capital · mate · net · lean

  1. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  2. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  3. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  4. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  5. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  6. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  7. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  8. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  9. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  10. Have you found your soul ________________?
  11. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  12. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  13. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  14. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  15. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  16. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  17. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  18. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  19. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  20. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  21. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  22. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  23. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  24. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.

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

Answer key

  1. net — after costs
  2. kick — with a leg
  3. capital — a city
  4. staff — employees
  5. net — in sport
  6. kick — a thrill
  7. lash — a whip stroke
  8. lash — to lash out
  9. mate — to breed
  10. mate — a partner
  11. prune — the fruit
  12. lean — thin
  13. capital — a big letter
  14. prune — to trim
  15. staff — a stick
  16. staff — employees
  17. kick — in football
  18. prune — to trim
  19. capital — money
  20. lash — an eyelash
  21. lean — to rest against
  22. net — for catching
  23. mate — a friend
  24. lean — to bend

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