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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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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 · ruler · race · prune · board · stick · sharp · wind

  1. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  2. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  3. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  4. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  5. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  6. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  7. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  8. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  9. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  10. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  11. It's one o'clock ________________.
  12. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  13. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  14. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  15. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  16. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  17. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  18. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  19. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  20. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  21. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  22. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  23. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  24. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — clever
  2. wind — moving air
  3. stick — a piece of wood
  4. board — to get on
  5. ruler — for measuring
  6. capital — money
  7. sharp — with an edge
  8. race — a contest
  9. prune — to trim
  10. capital — a city
  11. sharp — exactly
  12. ruler — a monarch
  13. wind — moving air
  14. race — humankind
  15. prune — to trim
  16. stick — a piece of wood
  17. wind — to turn a key
  18. stick — to attach or keep to
  19. board — a committee
  20. ruler — for measuring
  21. capital — a big letter
  22. board — a flat piece
  23. prune — the fruit
  24. race — the arms race

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