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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: current · capital · staff · cap · pit · kid · prune · trunk

  1. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  2. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  3. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  4. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  5. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  6. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  7. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  8. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  9. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  10. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  11. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  12. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  13. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  14. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  15. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  16. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  17. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  18. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  19. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  20. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  21. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  22. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  23. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  24. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a big letter
  2. staff — employees
  3. capital — a city
  4. kid — to tease
  5. capital — money
  6. cap — a lid
  7. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  8. trunk — of a tree
  9. cap — a hat
  10. pit — a hole
  11. prune — the fruit
  12. trunk — of an elephant
  13. kid — child
  14. staff — a stick
  15. cap — of ice
  16. prune — to trim
  17. pit — in a race
  18. current — electric
  19. current — of water
  20. pit — a fruit stone
  21. current — happening now
  22. trunk — of a car
  23. prune — to trim
  24. staff — employees

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