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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: roll · toast · cap · prune · craft · band · spring · sharp

  1. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  2. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  3. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  4. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  5. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  6. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  7. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  8. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  9. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  10. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  11. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  12. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  13. It's one o'clock ________________.
  14. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  15. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  16. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  17. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  18. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  19. We're on a ________________ here.
  20. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  21. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  22. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  23. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  24. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.

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

Answer key

  1. toast — bread
  2. craft — a handicraft
  3. band — a ring
  4. craft — a skill
  5. band — a music group
  6. cap — of ice
  7. toast — a drink to someone
  8. cap — a lid
  9. toast — the most admired
  10. spring — of water
  11. sharp — clever
  12. spring — the season
  13. sharp — exactly
  14. craft — boats
  15. cap — a hat
  16. prune — the fruit
  17. roll — a cake
  18. band — a rubber band
  19. roll — on a roll
  20. prune — to trim
  21. sharp — with an edge
  22. spring — a coil
  23. prune — to trim
  24. roll — a list

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